Anomalous
by Aikori Ichijouji
Summary: Kyoko accepted she would most likely be a 'Dud' and decided to move forward with an ordinary life. However, the extraordinary has caught up with her to lead her on a merry chase to learn who she really is. And the one man, who people both revere and avoid, could be the key to unlocking it all. AU.
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE**

At the ripe age of seventeen, being considered a 'Dud' was the social equivalent of death. Granted, roughly half the population of the world fit into that category, while the other half had varying degrees of abilities ranging from extremely weak, but oddly useful to overwhelmingly powerful. Technically, the proper term to use was 'Unaugmented,' to describe any individual who had not experienced an Awakening by the age of eighteen. 'Dud' was supposedly to be relegated to nothing more than an unacceptable slur but, the more syllables you try to force people to say, the more they will be inclined to stick with the easier word.

There were some benefits, however; particularly in the realm of academia. Unaugmenteds were not required to attend additional classes, nor were they press-ganged into applying to one of the many Academy locations once they completed their core education. As such, Kyoko Mogami accelerated her basic course of study so that she could leave her small town behind that much faster. Having no real familial ties to keep her there, she felt no remorse in making her exit. Of course, the fact that her friend—with whom she had been enamored for a number of years, quite unbeknownst to him—invited her to accompany him to the capital city where he would enroll in the Central Academy was more than enough impetus in itself to influence her move.

It turned out to be a good decision on her part as the large number of people who attended the Central Academy in the city made the demand for skilled, Unaugmented employees quite high. Kyoko was able to secure a clerical job fairly easily to pay for the apartment they rented near the Academy grounds, since only Sho (her aforementioned friend) qualified for free housing. It was a rather small place, with only one bedroom that Kyoko gallantly offered up, pledging to sleep in the common area on a makeshift bed. Sho needed the room to study and practice, she reasoned, and the door muffled the sounds she made in the morning so that he could sleep while she made their lunches and prepared herself for work. It seemed to be a logical arrangement and they continued on in this manner for several months, essentially enjoying a charmed life together.

Of course, charmed lives do not make for a particularly good, or enduring, story. Therefore, it should come as a surprise to no one that trouble lay ahead for the pragmatic young woman. Let this serve as a cautionary lesson that cohabiting with someone for whom you harbor romantic feelings—while they remain blissfully ignorant of said fact—can lead to a disaster of one sort or another. Oftentimes, the disaster is quite minimal, but still very personal and emotional. And, sometimes, it can lead to life-altering changes.

For Kyoko, her turning point took the shape of a small, innocent lunch container that she carelessly packed alongside her own while gathering her things that morning. A low groan of dismay left her lips as she realized her mistake. Collecting her purse and tote, she swiftly left her desk to deliver the container she unintentionally kidnapped in the hopes that she would possibly have a few minutes to spare to eat her own lunch upon her return. Briefly checking her watch, she walked as quickly as her legs would carry her to the Academy library as he would most likely be there at that time of the day.

The pavement was thoroughly pounded by her feet by the time she reached the library steps. She silently thanked herself for investing in sensible flat shoes. Once she reached the hallway of study alcoves, her breathing had somewhat returned to normal. Her golden eyes swept left and right as she walked briskly, scanning for the perpetually disheveled straw-colored hair of her friend. The container sat eagerly in her hands, waiting to be deposited with its rightful owner. Upon finally locating him, she stopped dead in her tracks and the change in momentum sent the container forward out of her grasp.

It appeared as if her rush to bring Sho his lunch was entirely unnecessary as he found something else to consume. Or rather, some _one._ A curvaceous brunette sat astride his lap in the plushly upholstered chair, her face firmly planted on his own and his arms locked around her in an amorous embrace. Kyoko's eyes widened as she took in the scene before her, a horrific still life that sat frozen as all the murmurs from the voices of the library patrons around her abruptly went silent. Her heart pounded in her ears like her own personal marching band and she suddenly felt overwhelmingly feverish. She spun around and immediately departed from the library, oblivious to the fact that every person she passed was completely immobilized and wordless.

In the same instant, in a building on the far side of the expansive courtyard that stretched out in front of the library, a tall, dark-haired man was forced to sit on one of the benches along the hallway in which he walked. A powerful sensation washed over him, making him dizzy, and an acute pain bloomed behind his eyes. The man who had been walking beside him instantly came to his aid as he absently pushed his glasses further up his nose. The seated man held up a hand and shook his head. It had been quite some time since he last experienced this, but he knew the feeling would pass soon. However, a Catastrophic Awakening was a rare enough occurrence, but for it to affect him so strongly, it had to be close. It also had to be someone of the same level as him. He felt equal amounts of anticipation and dread; whoever it was, he would meet them soon enough once the Academy got their hands on them.

Once Kyoko made it outside of the library, she had fully exhausted the adrenaline that kept her moving thus far. The heat suffusing her body doubled in intensity and nearly convinced her that she was about to be engulfed in flames. Coupled with the sudden lack of energy, her vision blurred and began to darken around the edges as her knees buckled underneath her. Were someone able to witness both events concurrently, they would notice that the long-forgotten lunch container—that had since been hovering silently in midair after launching from her hands—hit the ground with a clatter at the same time that Kyoko's unconscious body crumpled onto the stone pavement of the courtyard.

The clock in the central tower of the library building chimed the hour and, while no one inside the building noticed the anomaly, several people outside wondered why it was over a minute late.

* * *

 **I'M BACK, BABY: Welcome to my new multi-chapter adventure. I hope you enjoy it here. Not sure how many chapters it will be at this point, but it will at least be somewhere between my last two stories. I'm putting up both the prologue and the first chapter so you can get a decent bite rather than just a tiny taste.**

 **The plan is to update every other week if I can but I already know things will start to get hairy around the holidays. Anyway, welcome aboard and let's enjoy the ride together!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	2. Awakening

**CHAPTER 1: AWAKENING**

The incessant, albeit muted, beeping of hospital machinery is what finally roused Kyoko. She squinted her eyes against the bright overhead lights, seemingly magnified by the sterile white walls and ceiling surrounding them. Looking downward, she saw her right arm stretched out beside her above the thin, white blanket that covered her; a clear tube spiraled off from where it was attached to her hand via tape and needle. Her other hand came up from under the blanket, where it was tucked tightly beside her, to scratch at her neck and she felt a couple small patches adhered along one side. Connected to these patches appeared to be thin wires that were hooked up to a machine beside the bed that quietly displayed a variety of numbers in colorful, blinking lights.

She smelled sharp scent of disinfectant mingled in with another, almost cloyingly sweet odor. Wrinkling her nose, she frowned. How she hated the smell of hospitals; it always brought back memories she preferred to forget. The door to her room opened and a nurse walked in, looking at her curiously. He set about checking to ensure the random accessories they attached to her body were still in place and operational.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as his hands continued to work.

"Fine, I think," she said with an unsure voice. "What—"

"Don't worry," he cut her off, anticipating her question. "A doctor and an Academy Rep will be in here shortly to explain everything to you."

Kyoko blinked and stared dumbly at the man whose attention was fully focused on adjusting the speed of the liquid dripping into the tube that led to her right hand. Once he finished the task, he looked up at her with a gentle smile and placed two fingers against her forehead. The heavy fog she felt upon waking was cleared in an instant and her thoughts were once again lucid.

"A little something for the disorientation," the nurse said with a quick wink. "I'll leave you alone to get your wits about you before the others barge in here."

Once he was gone, Kyoko tried to remember what exactly happened for her to end up in such a place. She remembered going to work that morning but trying to recall anything past that caused a dull ache in her head. Delving further into her memories only made it worse until her head throbbed painfully and the only clue she could uncover was the image of a lunch container clutched in her hands. At that moment, the once quiet machine beside her made a shrill piercing noise, jolting her out of her reverie and ruining her concentration. With that, the sound stopped immediately and her head dropped back towards the pillow nestled behind her in defeat and exhaustion.

Moments later, the door opened again and a man and woman walked in together. The woman, in her crisp white coat and oval, wire-framed glasses motioned for the older man to stand beside her at the foot of the bed. Kyoko raised her head from the pillow and sat upright to greet them.

"I am Doctor Asami," the woman introduced herself then pointed to the man beside her. "And this is Representative Sawara. We wanted to have a brief word with you if we could"

Kyoko nodded to both of them in response and waited for them to continue.

"Do you happen to have any recollection as to what happened before you were brought here today Miss… Mogami?" the doctor asked, hesitating on her name until she could confirm it by checking the chart she held in her hand.

"I was hoping you'd be able to tell me," Kyoko shook her head. "I've been trying to remember since I woke up, but every time I think about it, my head hurts."

"I see," the doctor made a note on her chart as she spoke. "Can you tell me what you know about Catastrophic Awakenings?"

"Only what little I learned about it in school," the young woman shrugged, wondering where this line of questioning was leading.

"Miss Mogami, our sensors picked up an extremely high concentration of energy and pinpointed it to where we found you unconscious in front of the Academy library," Sawara supplied, getting straight to the point to not draw things out any more than they already were. "The amount of energy we detected was high enough to presume that you experienced a Catastrophic Awakening."

Kyoko shook her head in disbelief. "I've never had an ability before. Why now?"

"Late Awakenings are uncommon, but they do occur," Dr. Asami explained. "Additionally, it is typical for those who experienced a Catastrophic one to suffer from temporary amnesia. However…"

"What?"

"When you were brought in, you were leaking excessive amounts of energy but we can barely find a trace on you now."

"I… don't understand. What does that mean?"

"Usually, once someone has awakened, they constantly put out residual energy. However, the sensor we hooked you up to," she gestured towards the machine beside her bed. "It can't get a steady reading of your ability or your level. If it weren't for the random spikes here and there, it would almost be as if you never had an Awakening at all.

"Does that mean I can just go back to my normal, Unaugmented life then?" Kyoko asked hopefully.

Sawara shook his head, "It is the responsibility of the Academy to properly prepare, educate and train anyone who has Awakened. Even though your case is somewhat… unique, we will enlist the help of the staff here at the Academy hospital as well as those in the Psychological and Neurological departments."

"So, I get to become an experiment?" she frowned.

"No, Miss Mogami," the man protested. "We only wish to help you understand and grow your own abilities."

"Great," Kyoko said with no enthusiasm, placing her head in her hands.

There was no going against the Academy when it came to things like this. With the backing of the entire government, the Academy maintained that it was in the best interests of everyone to ensure that anyone who displayed any type of ability be identified and properly prepared to harness their skills as well as prevent someone from abusing them. Those with nominal to mid-level abilities received guaranteed job placements through the program in fields that best utilized them. Higher leveled individuals often stayed under the employ of the Academy itself as specialists, instructors, researchers and caretakers. It seemed like an idyllic setup but, the truth of the matter was that it was easier to keep under close watch those who had the capacity to do the most damage were their abilities to go unchecked. Kyoko was loathe to find out under which category she would be placed.

"I should let you rest now," Representative Sawara excused himself. "Doctor Asami, please contact me once you have outlined her treatment plan. It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Mogami."

Once the door closed behind the departing man, the doctor turned back towards her with a wan smile.

"Do I at least get to go home at some point? I have a…" she winced slightly at the sharp pain that shot through her head. "I have a roommate that will be wondering where I am."

"You will be allowed to return home in a few hours once your vitals have stabilized," the woman nodded. "But, you will be required to reside on Academy premises once you return for your treatment. The appropriate arrangements will be made to ensure your housemate can stay where they are or be accommodated elsewhere."

"I'm the property of the Academy now, aren't I?" Kyoko asked bluntly.

"In a manner of speaking," Dr. Asami bobbed her head from side to side, there was no point in hiding it. "As of right now, you are suffering from some sort of mental block that is hindering your abilities. We need to help you get around it so we can fully ascertain your skill level. Then, you can be enrolled in the appropriate development program."

Kyoko let got of a long, heavy sigh but said nothing more. With a promise to return with more details regarding her prescribed treatment, the doctor left her alone once again.

* * *

She returned to her apartment that evening after promising to report back to the hospital the next morning. That promise was, of course, solidified by thinly veiled threats to have her brought in against her will should she attempt to forego her appointment. The bedroom door opened abruptly after she placed her keys in the basket by the front door.

"You're back much later than usual." Sho stated, watching her put her things down in the entryway.

Kyoko was halfway finished with removing her shoes when he noticed the white identification band still secured around her wrist. That could have come from only one place. When she looked up from her feet, she noticed him staring.

"What happened to you?" he asked in a flat tone.

She gave him the short version of the story, which was quite brief considering she had no memory of the events leading up to her waking in the hospital. The most important points were covered; the news of her Awakening and the subsequent arrangements for her to stay at the Academy. He gaped at her with a mixture of both surprise and pity as he listened.

"That was _you_ they found today? I heard about that, but no one knew who it was," he wondered aloud. "What were you even doing on Academy grounds?"

"I wish I could remember," she shrugged.

"So, what are you going to do now?"

Kyoko laughed ruefully, "You make it sound as if I have a choice in the matter."

"But isn't this what you've always wanted?" he reminded her. "I remember how excited you used to get imagining your own Awakening after I had mine."

"That was back when I thought I could have my abilities on my own terms," she crossed her arms and looked at him, a sad smile on her face. "But, not like this, Sho. I never imagined it would be like this."

"I'd ask if there's anything I can do," he scratched idly at the base of his neck. "But, I really don't think there is."

"No," she agreed. "Besides, it's not like it's your fault."

As soon as the words left her lips, something inside inexplicably told her it was a lie and the throbbing in her head returned. She rubbed at her temples and went to sit on the tiny fold-out couch in the common area, asking Sho to get her a glass of water.

"Are you sure you were fit to be released like this?" he asked, doubt written across his features.

"Well, if not, I suppose it's a good thing I've been summoned to the hospital again tomorrow morning," she said with a groan as she continued to rub at her head. "I'm sorry we have to lose the apartment, even though we only stayed here because of me."

"Don't worry about it," Sho soothed. "I'm sure the Academy will give me housing on the grounds. Until then, there's someone I can stay with."

The ache in Kyoko's head now included intermitted sharp jabs of pain and she closed her eyes against the unpleasant sensation. She tried to continue talking to Sho in hopes of providing a distraction.

"Anyway, how was your day?"

"Oh, just the usual, training and more training," he said noncommittally. "Although, I found my lunch container on the floor of the library this afternoon. I guess it fell out of my bag at some point and I didn't notice so I thought I'd forgotten it and ate at the café. I didn't know if the food is still safe to eat but I put it back in the fridge if you… Kyoko?!"

Her hand fell limply into her lap and her body slumped to one side. Long, black hair fell in cascades across her now pale face as Kyoko fainted for the second time that day.

When she awoke again, in the middle of the night, the lights in the apartment were off and she was alone. Reaching for the half-empty glass of water she started drinking earlier, she gulped down the rest of the liquid. Once she was certain that she felt good enough to move about, she swiftly changed her clothes and arranged the couch into her usual bed formation. This would be her last night in the apartment and she was unconscious for about half of it. She hoped this whole fainting business was not going to be a regular occurrence.

Much to her surprise, Sho got up when she did that morning and helped gather the few things she had brought with her when they moved. He normally never saw her off in the morning when she would leave for work. Then again, circumstances were quite different on this particular day. This would most likely be the last time they saw each other for an unspecified length of time. For some reason, Kyoko felt relieved by this fact and it confused her.

"Should you be carrying all of this by yourself?" he asked, dubiously.

"Oh, they'll be sending a car for me," she said and then let out a short, derisive snort. "I'm sure the last thing they'd want is for their science project to go missing."

He did not know what to say to that, so he shrugged, "I guess I'll see you around the Academy soon, right?"

Kyoko smiled at this, "Sure."

They said their farewells and he briefly wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against his side, resting his head against hers for just a moment before letting her go. It was something he had always done since they were kids growing up together but, this time, Kyoko was grateful for the fact that it was a quick gesture. Discomfort roiled in her stomach and she got the oddest feeling that she should not be doing this. Like she had no right to touch him anymore.

* * *

Kyoko was tired. Tired of tests, tired of therapies and, tired of talking. Two whole weeks had gone by and she was no closer to breaking through her mental block than she was when the whole ordeal started. She had to admit that they at least treated her rather well for the most part. A nicely furnished studio apartment was provided to her near the hospital and someone escorted her to and from her various treatments every day. The food was decent and her schedule was not as rigorous as she initially feared. While she did have to wake up fairly early most mornings, her sessions with various specialists would end in the afternoon and she was free to return to the apartment and sleep or explore the few Academy buildings to which she was granted access.

However, this did not negate the fact that she was still mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted. Every few days, she would be foisted upon someone new who walked her through the same line of questions and experiences, hoping that only the fact that their particular ability was different than the person who treated her before and would somehow be the catalyst for her breakthrough. She did not want to talk about her childhood anymore. She did not want to talk about her mother anymore. And, she most definitely did not want to talk about Sho anymore; talking about him in particular always made the fatigue and pain she felt worse. Of course it did, she reasoned, she had been forcefully separated from her only friend in this city and, with the way things were currently progressing, she probably would never see him again.

She was sad, she was frustrated and she was _tired._ But, she was not the only one.

"I've tried everything I can think of," Dr. Asami explained hurriedly to the man sitting across from her desk. "I tried hypnosis. I've had my best empaths conduct cognitive therapy with her. I even tried to delve into her mind myself only to be met with the equivalent of a brick wall. Nothing seems to be strong enough to be able to break through her block. I'm running out of options."

"Do you think a brute force approach would work better?" Representative Sawara asked cryptically.

"Everything I've tried so far could be considered brute force seeing how unwilling she was to comply with this in the first place," she paused then, mulling over his question and wondering what his angle was. "Why? What did you have in mind?"

"I could put in a call with Takarada…"

"You don't mean to get…"

"He's the strongest option we have," Sawara affirmed.

Dr. Asami hesitated while she considered the offer, chewing nervously on her lip. She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it shut once she thought better of it and and shook her head. Then, with a light shrug, she nodded her assent.

"Fine," she agreed begrudgingly. "But only _one_ session and I have the right to alter the amount of time he has with her as I see fit. The last thing we need is for her to be rendered completely unresponsive after he's taken a virtual excavator to her mind."

Sawara nodded in acceptance of her terms, "I'll make the call and let you know when he will be coming to see her."

She wrung her hands as she watched the man leave her office, wondering if she made the right decision. While it was important that Kyoko's abilities be fully realized, she was unsure if the price to pay for that should be quite this high. Nonetheless, she had her obligations to the Academy. As far as they were concerned, she was an unknown variable and those had the potential to be very dangerous if they had no way of knowing how to control her. Dr. Asami let a small sigh escape her lips. There were probably worse things than having to undergo the expert probing of the Academy's most powerful telepath. But, she was unable to think of one at the moment.

* * *

 **NO, I AM NOT A SHO SYMPATHIZER: Sometimes, I just get tired of writing him as an overbearing, narcissistic douchecanoe (even though I know that's _totally_ his thing). His personality grates on me and it makes it difficult to write him. So, instead, he's an oblivious idiot who doesn't know how to be a proper friend when he's too caught up in his own life. Because, deep down, that's who he probably would've been if his ego didn't have a gigantic growth spurt along with his body. However, the fact that Kyoko treated him way too kindly despite being the cause of at least some of her problems has not changed.**

 **Anywho, that's my story for his slight character change, and I'm sticking to it.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	3. Blocked

**CHAPTER 2: BLOCKED**

Inquisitor Ren Tsuruga was both the pride and bane of the Psychological Investigation department. Nevertheless, he was very good at his job; too good, if you asked most people. Inquisitors worked for the Academy as investigators when other means of obtaining evidence were not feasible. Typically, they were used in instances of confirming whether or not someone was guilty of abusing their abilities. As fully trained and talented telepaths, their evidence was admissible in most courts and only on occasion would it need to be corroborated by another independent party.

When all was said and done, he was an unnaturally efficient, well-honed tool used to indiscriminately infiltrate other people's minds to suit the Academy's needs. There was little comfort in that.

This morning, however, he had been summoned to the hospital to examine the young woman whose Catastrophic Awakening he felt a few weeks prior. She was unable to access her abilities since the event and none of the other specialists in the hospital were able to get through her supposed mental block. He sighed when he remembered the briefing when asked to report to his superior's office for Chief Takarada to relay the official request. Unfortunately, voicing his distaste for the situation would benefit nothing and he would still be required to invade the mind of an innocent. They were sending in a demolitionist because the digging crew was unsuccessful.

Well, at least it would be a nice break from looking through the minds of deviants and criminals.

Yukihito Yashiro, his perpetual, bespectacled companion, spoke with the receptionist at the main desk to get further directions as to where they were scheduled to meet. He led them up several sets of stairs and down a long hallway before they stopped at a nondescript door with a nondescript grey number plate next to it. When they entered the room, he saw a young woman, probably in her late teens, dressed in a pale yellow shift with brilliant gold eyes curtained by inky, black hair. A doctor stood beside her talking gently in hushed tones but stopped when she saw the two men come in.

"Now, Kyoko, if you are uncomfortable at any point during this, you are free to stop and have someone fetch me, okay?" the doctor turned a stern look towards Yukihito and continued. "I trust you'll keep him in line?"

"Absolutely," he replied immediately.

"I guess we'll leave you to it, then," she said with a reluctant sigh.

His companion followed the doctor out of the room and quietly remained by the door should he be needed. Ren slowly approached the woman and took a seat in the chair opposite hers, bringing his elbows up to rest on the table that sat between them. He felt her eyes on him as she looked him over, taking in the fitted, charcoal grey suit, white shirt and navy tie he wore; boringly dressed, just like everything else in the room. Her eyes then snapped to meet his unflinchingly.

"I am Inquisitor Tsuruga, but you may just call me Ren if you prefer," he introduced himself, his deep, authoritative voice warped by the odd echo the sparsely furnished room created.

"Kyoko Mogami," she said offering her hand to him.

He hesitated a bit before slowly shaking her hand. It was certainly a different experience to have someone completely unafraid of you. Most of the people he encountered were well aware of his reputation and wore looks of apprehension, defiance or anger. Perhaps she was only told that he was there to help her. She had no idea who he was, or _what_ he was. What a shame, her honest ignorance would be quickly dispatched once he began his work.

"I've been told you're going to open my mind up and dissect it like a frog," her eyes were wide, but she looked at him more out of curiosity than fear.

"A bit crass, but I suppose one could describe it that way, yes," perhaps she _did_ know something about him after all.

"I've been their 'precious specimen' for over two weeks now," Kyoko shrugged. "Sugarcoating everything isn't really helping at this point."

"I suppose so."

"Can you tell me a little bit about how this is going to work?" he noticed her hands never moved from where she placed them on top of the table. "I'm willing to cooperate so long as I know what I'm in for."

He cleared his throat and began by explaining briefly what an Inquisitor does. If she was going to be upfront with him, he felt he owed her the courtesy of doing the same. Next, he explained his process of accessing someone else's mind. It was very intrusive and wholly indelicate as most people typically resist him at first. As it is a natural reaction of the body to automatically reject anything that is not supposed to be present, so too does the principle apply for the mind.

Therefore, he often has to force his way in to get past the initial resistance and, essentially, ransacks the landscape of their minds for whatever evidence—often taking the form of a hidden memory—he is required to obtain and extract it. Because his line of work requires that efficiency be more important than holding back for the sake of the other party, his method tends to affect people in different ways depending on how strong their mental faculties are at the time. Some simply are rendered unconscious until the ordeal is over, and others can experience the equivalent of a post-trauma comatose state for hours or, on occasion, weeks later and is often followed by residual effects.

"I understand now why Doctor Asami was so concerned for my comfort with this," Kyoko nodded but looked no more intimidated than she had earlier.

"Do you still wish to continue?" Ren asked.

"I don't think they would have called you here if there was any other option," she said pointedly. "If you don't mind, I'd rather get this over with so they can either sate their curiosity or label me a failure."

"Very well," he nodded.

"Is there anything I can do to make this a little easier?" Kyoko queried. "Doctor Asami tried something similar with me but she wasn't even able to get in."

"Oftentimes people have found success in convincing themselves that they are allowing it to happen when I make my attempt," he suggested blandly. "It does not work for everyone, particularly those who have little experience with telepaths, but you can try. Either way, I will be getting in, with or without your approval."

She swallowed, "Okay."

He reached up and removed the plain metal clip on his tie, placing it neatly on the table beside him. It was clear that Kyoko noticed the action but chose not to question it. His hands were then sitting flat against the table's surface and he closed his eyes. Apparently she preferred to keep her eyes open as he could still feel her staring at him. Seeking her out, he slammed quickly into her mind once he located it. Her eyes would probably not stay open for much longer.

"Would it be possible for you to be a little gentler?" she hissed in discomfort at the feeling of him sifting through her thoughts. "You're like a bull in a china shop in there."

His eyes flew open, the connection breaking instantly and he looked at her with one eyebrow raised. This was definitely unexpected.

"What?" Kyoko cocked her head to one side.

"Most people are usually not conscious when I do this," he shook his head dismissively. "I am not accustomed to someone talking during the process."

"I guess there's a first time for everything," Kyoko shrugged again. "Now, if you don't mind, a little more finesse would be appreciated."

"I will try," he closed his eyes again and focused once more on her.

Strangely enough, this approach actually took more effort on his part. This time, it was more like a tentative offering of a handshake or a polite knocking on a door. Pleased with the change, Kyoko's mind settled down and allowed him access to explore. It had been years since he was willingly welcomed in to someone else's mind, but his early training was not forgotten. The majority of her mind appeared to him like a lush, wild garden; inhabited by elves and sprites, filled with a wide variety of plants, colorful birds and a few incongruous oddities. Well, he hoped a juggling clown was not a typical feature in a garden. Ah, the untarnished innocence of youth. When he finally came across the manifestation of her mental block, he noticed something odd. It had a wholly different feeling when compared to the rest of her mind's landscape. This could not be something she created.

"You are not the cause of your mental block," he said aloud, trying his best to ignore the peculiarity of being able to talk with her. "This is the work of someone else."

"So, you're saying that another person went into my head and put it there?"

"It would seem so, yes."

"Well that explains a lot…" she trailed off, but when he remained silent, she explained further. "All of my previous treatments focused on my relationship with… a friend of mine because those memories would cause me physical pain when I tried to recall them. But, if this is caused by someone else, then that might have very little to do with anything."

"Unless it was your friend who created the block," Ren suggested.

"I doubt it," Kyoko countered, politely ignoring the insinuation that Sho would ever do something like that without her knowledge. "He's a pyrokinetic, not a telepath."

He pondered briefly, "One moment, I am going to try something."

It was something he usually only did when his evidence required verification by another telepath; carrying someone else into the mind of another. Then again, if she had the mental fortitude to withstand his intrusion and still remain conscious, he figured she was strong enough to be brought into her own mind. It was a gamble, to be sure, but if her doctor resorted to asking for his assistance, they were already playing with a weak hand. He coaxed a physical manifestation of her to appear before his own. She looked up at him in shock, which was to be expected as not many people adjust to being essentially teleported into their own minds. Her shock was overcome fairly quickly and she began to look around, touching the various leaves and flowers that surrounded them in amazement.

"Wow, it's gorgeous in here," she grinned excitedly; Ren noted absently that she had a dazzling smile. "Would I be able to come here on my own without you doing this?"

"With practice, I suppose," he nodded once. "But, for now, I need to show you what I was talking about."

Ren led her over to the limitlessly high wall he encountered. When she looked at it, she could immediately tell why he assumed it was not of her own creation. The flat, steel wall was entirely featureless with the exception of the one nearby corner, indicating it seemed to be enclosing an area of some sort. It was a stark and sterile installation in a place that was otherwise colorful and teeming with life.

"Does this look like something your friend could have made?"

"If it were even possible? No," she declared definitively. "It's not flashy enough to be his style. But, if it's not him then why would my memories cause me to react like that?"

"Perhaps it is not the person in the memory but what they represent," he suggested. "Memories are always interconnected between people, places and events. Thinking of one causes you to remember another and so forth and so on. Therefore, he may not be directly connected to whatever is in there but he could be triggering you to recall something that is."

She walked directly up to wall, placing her hand against the smooth surface and followed it around the corner to the other side. A heavy-looking door was found halfway along the other side of the wall, but it had no handle or visible hinges that would allow it to be opened. Above it was a small sign with odd characters that she could not understand.

"Bad memories," she heard Ren's voice say over her shoulder. "Keep out."

Kyoko looked back and saw him staring at the sign, "You can read that?"

"You cannot?"

"No, it looks like gibberish to me."

"I wonder if whoever put this here apparently only made sure that you would not understand it, but did not expect anyone else to have access to your mind," he mused as he continued to examine the sign.

They both began to inspect the surface of the door, looking for any hidden button or latch. Ren's fingers came in contact with a particular spot near one edge and he instantly dropped to his knees, a sharp pain shooting through him. By the time Kyoko noticed something was wrong and tried to reach out and help, everything went white and they were back in the room where they sat facing each other.

"What… just happened?"

"I think we found the security system," he groaned in discomfort, running a hand through his dark hair.

"We have to go back and try again," she insisted, slamming her hands against the table in frustration. "I need to know what's behind that wall."

"Unfortunately, Doctor Asami said I was only to meet with you once and only for an hour and our time is nearly up," he shook his head, looking at the clock. "She will have to authorize a second visit."

"Well, tell her what we found and she'll have to let you come back," she cried desperately. "I'll even refuse to see anyone else except for you."

The corner of his mouth rose a little at her fervent declaration. No one ever asked for a repeat performance with him. Even the other professionals he worked with were wary when asked to verify his evidence. One experience was usually enough to last a lifetime.

"I will see what I can do," he offered.

"You have to have some sort of influence around here, don't you? I mean, you're the only person I've seen walking around with their own personal assistant."

"You think the man standing outside is my assistant?" he motioned to the door and she could just make out the back of his head as he waited patiently for his charge. "He is my keeper."

"Keeper?" she asked, confusion clearly evident in her tone.

A tiny, wry smile formed on his lips, "You are not the only 'precious specimen' here at the Academy, Miss Mogami."

* * *

 **POSTING A NEW CHAPTER IS THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY WEEK: I'm trying to stay ahead of myself like I did with my previous story by writing several chapters in advance to give myself a buffer. I made some good progress before this whole week decided to take a massive crap on me. Therefore, I chose to post the next chapter a little early to make me feel better. What's more enjoyable than being a rebel and ignoring the giant pile of work you have to post fanfiction online? Nothing, that's what.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	4. Feelings

**CHAPTER 3: Feelings**

Following his cryptic reply, Ren suggested that she use her free time to recall if she ever encountered another telepath at any point in her life. He also recommended she try to sort through her memories to determine which ones cause her the most discomfort to see if there is anything else connecting them. The first one was fairly easy, she thought, as the majority of her telepathic encounters were here at the Academy. Kyoko nodded, saying nothing further as she watched him join the man who waited outside the room before disappearing down the hallway.

She leaned back in her chair and stared blankly at the ceiling until one of the orderlies arrived to check on her, seemingly surprised to find her awake and aware of her surroundings. Inquisitor Tsuruga certainly did have quite the reputation. Well, she would readily admit it was not entirely unfounded. The whole experience was fairly surreal, but she could not argue that he was in any way unskilled. For someone with that type of infamy, she assumed he would be older and was surprised to see a man in his early twenties enter the room. She supposed he tried to appear more mature and unapproachable by dressing in dark, serious clothing. However, despite commanding an intimidating presence, she found she was unable to be afraid of him.

Regardless of appearances, after one hour with him, she was actually closer to understanding her predicament. Of course, she now had even more questions than before.

Finding Dr. Asami to be unavailable when she questioned the orderly as to her whereabouts, Kyoko then resigned herself to wander the area surrounding the hospital on her own. After witnessing the beautiful garden inside her own mind, she suddenly craved to be outdoors. Her time spent living in the city, and her most recent stint at the Academy, nearly caused her to forget the natural beauty of her hometown. Now that she was reminded of it, she found herself missing the familiar deep greens of thickly clustered trees and the vibrant colors and scents of blooming flowers.

The grounds outside of the Academy hospital proved to be a decent oasis surrounded by towering structures of stone, steel and glass. It was not like the large, and seemingly vast, forests surrounding her childhood home, but it was still beautiful in its own right. A narrow, paved footpath wound its way through clumps of trees and passed by a small stream. Luckily for Kyoko, there was a bench facing the stream and it was a suitable distance away; not too far that she could not admire it, but not too close.

She would never readily admit to anyone the complicated relationship she had with rivers and streams. It was far too embarrassing—as well as difficult—to explain. While she felt a sense of comfort being in the presence of one, a completely unrelated feeling of foreboding lay just underneath that, tainting the entire experience. Kyoko always guessed it had something to do with the powerful yet quiet movement of the water that always seemed so calm on the surface yet indiscriminately carried everything along with its strong current and eroded anything that resisted. Having never visited the seaside, she wondered if such a large body of water would be too much for her.

As a result, she never got too close but chose instead to watch from a distance. She smiled a little at the sight. The captivating beauty of the sunlight-dappled water coursing along was worth the slight unease for the feeling of serenity that always washed over her. And she needed whatever peace she could find now that her once peaceful and normal life had been turned on its ear. Kyoko sighed and sat on the bench, bringing her legs up against her body to rest her chin on her knees. She was fairly certain she would never know a normal life again.

* * *

It was not often that he visited the Central Academy library now that he was no longer in training. The quiet hum of voices and the smell of books was riddled with nostalgia of his earlier days at the Academy. Ren chose a quiet, isolated corner of the third floor, far away from the curious stares of others. After his earlier appointment in the hospital, he asked Yukihito for permission to do some research after the extractions he still had scheduled to perform for the day. Now, with the remainder of the afternoon to himself, he yielded to his curiosity.

After his meeting with Kyoko, his interest was piqued by what he witnessed. Never had he come across a section of someone's mind so tightly formed with no discernible means of entry except through a well-secured door. He was especially interested in the fact that someone else had created it and wondered how it was even possible. At first, he supposed that the young woman could potentially have an identity disorder and she actually was the one who put it there. Still, he had been in the fractured minds of those who suffered from dissociative episodes and he found none of the hallmarks in hers.

As a result, he found himself in the library with a small stack of thick books that explored various facets of telepathic abilities. The majority of them had more explanations about the creation of false memories in the minds of others than anything regarding blocking memories that were already there. The last bits of sunlight were disappearing below the horizon when he made it to the second to last book in his stack. This particular book had a bit more to offer in terms of possibilities but was severely lacking in details from documented cases. He skimmed through it anyway for any information that could potentially be helpful.

For some telepaths to cause a form of temporary amnesia in people around them at the time of their Awakening was not uncommon. However, the author of this book seemed to believe that there were instances of people permanently missing parts of their memories as a result. They posited that it would have to be from someone who is particularly powerful. Unfortunately, the only case they could point to as a possible example was the one legendary happening that was still shrouded in mystery to this day. The Keypointe Incident. The author could not prove their theory, of course, as everyone in that town was confirmed to have had their memories restored within the weeks following the event. But, there was the occasional unsubstantiated rumor that would float around the community and the author seemed quite certain that with the magnitude of the occurrence, such a thing would not be entirely impossible.

Ren rubbed absently at the side of his face as he read. The last thing he wanted was to trigger another round of excitement surrounding Keypointe. After it happened, roughly ten years prior, a veritable witch hunt began as the Academy searched for the person responsible. When they came up empty, it was a damaging blow to the pride of the institution. Researchers and investigators the world over wasted years trying to find any shred of evidence that could lead them to the one whose Awakening debilitated an entire town. He shook his head to himself. That was a rabbit hole he did not want to go down, especially when he had no idea where she was even from.

He closed the book and put it with the others he already finished perusing. Looking warily at the last book in the stack, he picked it up and turned to the index pages. He originally had high expectations that cursory research would at least provide _some_ ideas. Unfortunately, his hope was rapidly dwindling.

* * *

"Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?" Dr. Asami argued. "If I allow this, I'm most likely going to be held responsible for what might happen to you."

"I'd absolve you of the responsibility if I could," Kyoko replied resolutely. "You can even have documented officially in writing if you wish, but this has been the most effective method we've tried so far. Wouldn't we be foolish to ignore it?"

She was able to get an audience with the doctor that evening before returning to her apartment and wanted to plead her case for having Ren return. Although scant on the details of their interaction she gave the doctor enough information to support her request. Kyoko tried to hold on to what little of herself she could keep secret; the whole situation felt less out of her control that way. Of course, Dr. Asami was immediately resistant to the idea and wanted her charge to have nothing more to do with the young Inquisitor. It was both unfortunate and lucky that they discovered anything at all.

"If the readings from your Awakening are anything to go by, you potentially have a very high-level ability." she reasoned. "I don't want to see that lost because your mind's been stripped by him."

"I'm fully accepting of that risk," the young woman said with a determined frown. "It's not as if I have anything else going for me right now."

Kyoko gestured around her, referring to her current detention at the hospital. Dr. Asami looked at her for a long moment, clearly weighing the argument in her head before she spoke again. Was this really the only option they had available? She silently hoped the reward would be worth the risk.

"First, I will talk to the head of his department to determine whether or not he will allow it," she began. "If he does not, it will be out of my hands."

With a nod, Kyoko indicated her understanding.

"If he does, you will only have short sessions with him every other day and your mental stability will be evaluated periodically for degradation," Dr. Asami continued sternly. "Are we clear?"

The young woman smiled graciously, "Perfectly."

* * *

Kanae Kotonami was given the task of escorting Kyoko to and from her apartment most days. As an empath still in training, she was often given the more menial tasks, however, despite her overall negative attitude towards her situation, the young woman was always kind to her. They spent the majority of their time between locations chatting idly about unimportant things. For Kanae, it was a nice break from the usual rigors of her day. For Kyoko, having someone to mindlessly converse with made for pleasant bookends to her often unpleasant days.

"What else do you think could link memories together besides people and places?" Kyoko asked the woman walking beside her as they made their way back to her apartment building.

"Feelings, I would think," Kanae answered after considering her response.

Kyoko made a thoughtful noise, "Feelings?"

"All memories have emotions attached to them, It's what makes us smile or cry or laugh when we recall them," she explained "Most people don't clearly recollect events they had no strong feelings towards."

"Spoken like a true empath," Kyoko said teasingly.

The woman beside her shrugged, "Emotions may be my specialty, but that doesn't negate what I'm telling you."

"You're right," Kyoko admitted. "I just never thought about it that way."

She recalled the sign above the locked door in her mind. If there really were unpleasant memories stored there, why were all of them not in there and what set them apart from the rest? There were still a number of unhappy memories she could easily recall without fainting. They were still plenty painful to dredge up but not in the same way as the others. If those that remain hidden are linked by some other emotion, she was hard-pressed to figure out which one it was.

As the decision on her request had yet to be made, this was not the time to sit around, waiting for someone else to make a move. Instead, Kyoko sat with a pencil and notebook at the small kitchen table in her apartment. She had written a few words describing the broken, fragmented memories that caused her discomfort when she tried to access them. They would be her main focus for the next few days until Dr. Asami gave her an update. She wanted answers and she was going to get them, even if she had to suffer multiple blackouts in the process.

* * *

 **BUSY TIMES ABOUND: Things have been rather hectic around here after having to travel out of town twice in two weeks as well as some last-minute Halloween costume crafting. Thankfully, I was a bit ahead so I really only needed a few days to tweak and rewrite those parts I wasn't 100% happy with. Not sure how on-time the next few updates will be as I'll have friends visiting for my birthday which is coming up along with ye olde Day of Turkey but I'll be trying my best to keep it somewhat steady.**

 **Thanks to Michiyo, A Musing Brunette,** **paulagato, MWEH, Crazy4Animation, Blushweaver, ktoll9, Ela999, Zerely, Lennie, Kiaranaria, Ashenvale and everyone who uses the name 'Guest' for their reviews on the first few chapters. I often will message a number of you individually to thank you but it's been crazy so I haven't had the time. Sorry about that. Instead, I hope I can make do with a shoutout to you all here!**

 **Also, thanks to everyone who has favorited/followed the story. It's crazy to see how popular this story has become already and it's barely even started! No pressure, right? *sweats* I really hope I can meet your expectations and give you an amazing tale. See you all next time!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	5. Puzzles

**CHAPTER 4: PUZZLES**

"Solid performance as usual, Ren," the doctor said while looking at the readout on the screen before him. "Maybe even sharper than your last benchmark. Are you sure they haven't lightened your load?"

"Not at all," Ren shook his head. "It has been the same as always."

It was time for his monthly mental assessment. Telepaths who used their abilities frequently for particularly taxing jobs ran the risk of _veiling_ ; a term used to describe when their abilities suffer a temporary hibernation due to stress. The Academy preferred to keep their employed telepaths in top form at all times and mandated that those who used their skills on a daily basis be evaluated regularly to check for signs of potential waning.

For him at least, the process only took a half hour at the most. He would sit in a small, white room across from a person who looked at a series of images on a screen only they could see and correctly identify the image by accusing it through their mind. The person would either have a neutral expression or would occasionally alter their face slightly to convey an emotion that did not always match up with image. His speed and accuracy would be monitored and recorded. Having never experienced a work-related veiling, he had a spotless track record for the entirety of his career, but that never allowed him a pass from the frequent testing. So, here he was once again.

"If only there was a way to make a copy of that mind of yours," the doctor mused. "You're like the gold standard of telepaths!"

Ren gave the man a tight, but polite smile, "If you did, my usefulness would decrease considerably. I prefer to stay gainfully employed for the time being. Will that be all?"

"Don't worry, you're free to go," the other man said with a light chuckle. "I know you don't like any doctor other than the one personally assigned to you by Takarada to touch you. See you again next month!"

With a nod, he left the doctor's office to join Yukihito in the lobby. He found the man already standing near the door, waiting for him so they could both leave. They went through enough of these monthly visits that they could almost set their watches to them as they always took the same amount of time.

"Chief Takarada wants you to report to his office before the end of the day to discuss your upcoming schedule," Yukihito said as he opened the door, letting his charge proceed before him.

"Has there been a change since we last met at the start of the week?"

He smirked, "That girl apparently wants to see you again. She's already twisted the arm of her attending physician."

"Apparently meeting me face-to-face was not enough to dissuade her," Ren looked away from the bustling street ahead of him and over at the other man. "I suppose the sooner we go to him the better?"

"Only if you're done with your research," the smirk broadened. "I'm sure you'd prefer to be better informed before you plead with the Chief to indulge your new obsession."

"I'm not obsessed," the young man defended with a sharp glare. "Merely curious. It's not often I get a challenge like this."

"True, it's probably much more entertaining than extracting evidence from whack jobs and murderers."

He pointedly ignored him and slowly descended the steps to the car that waited to take them to the Judiciary building near the city's center. He still had to focus on the long day of work ahead of him before anything else. The research he managed to do in his spare hours continued to turn up very little in terms of possibilities. But, now that he was being asked to meet with her again, he may find more clues. It was a captivating puzzle. One he found he was looking forward to solving.

When they entered Chief Lory Takarada's office later that day, they found its occupant sitting in one of the large, cushioned chairs by the picture window that overlooked the main courtyard. Noticing their arrival, he motioned for them to join him and gestured towards the other seats situated nearby. Ren chose the rigid brown chair with its back to the window, his usual spot. He preferred to avoid comfortable chairs in places like that. The harder the chair, the more efficient he was about concluding his business so he could leave. It was a habit he developed over the years; something his boss recognized but to which he never took offense.

Ren liked to keep his distance from others as much as he could. The fact that he maintained a stoic and unapproachable demeanor was an added bonus. Though he was not a vain person in any sense of the word, he had seen himself in the mirror. His height allowed him to tower over most people and his lean, muscular figure was topped with a face that most people would consider generally attractive. And, he was aware of the whispers around him lamenting the fact that his personality was 'a waste of such a pretty face.' It suited him just fine as he preferred to have a reputation that prevented anyone from trying to get too close.

"I hear your wit and charm has landed you another female admirer," Takarada joked once everyone was seated.

Ren shot him a reproachful look, "I believe we were summoned here to discuss my schedule, sir."

"Always business as usual with you," his boss shook his head. "Anyway, Dr. Asami has requested that you work with the young lady three mornings per week if your schedule allows."

"Does my schedule allow it, Mr. Yashiro?"

"Next week should be fine, but subsequent weeks might be an issue," the other man answered. "We would have to reassign some of your appointments to another Inquisitor."

He nodded his thanks, grateful as always to have a mnemosyne by his side. Despite the man's unfortunate relationship with electronic devices—in that he was unable to interact with them as he would inexplicably break them—he had a memory like a well organized vault. It actually was a vault; he let Ren peek at it once when they were first getting to know each other as a way of establishing trust. Names, dates and relevant information were easily recallable for him as he had a virtual rolodex and filing cabinet in his head.

"And what benefit would there be to lending out my best and brightest for something that's not even related to our department?" Lory challenged.

"Because this potentially could become our issue if what I discovered is true."

"How so?" the Chief was now genuinely intrigued and not just challenging Ren to justify his usefulness.

"The mental block she has was not put there by her," he explained. "Someone else does not want her from accessing parts of her mind and they've taken measures to ensure that. If it's true that it was created against her will, then it would be within our jurisdiction to investigate potential unlawful activity."

"Well," the older man cleared his throat. "You could've just said that you wanted a break from your regular duties to court a beautiful woman but, since you already had an ironclad defense all lined up, we'll go with that one."

Ren fought hard against slapping his hand into his face but remained silent.

"Yukihito, please go arrange the updated schedule with my assistant so I can grill Ren about his new girlfriend."

With a nod, the man left the office and, once he was gone, Chief Takarada turned seriously towards the younger man and leaned forward in his seat.

"Was her Awakening the one you said you sensed the other day?"

"The dates and times do seem to match up, yes," Ren confirmed.

His boss let out a low whistle and rubbed thoughtfully at his goatee, "No wonder they're so desperate to figure her out. I'm sure the sensors already gave them a hint at how powerful she is."

"I'd have preferred to find nothing if it meant they would write her off. But, now that she knows something's wrong, she wants answers."

He really could not blame her for that. If he found out that someone had intruded in his mind and constructed something there without his permission or knowledge, he would want answers as well.

"You were able to speak with her afterwards?" Lory sounded only mildly surprised.

"I was able to speak with her during," Ren nodded slowly. "She is very strong mentally."

"I suppose I should've expected that, considering you sensed her Awakening. Now that she's already associated with the hospital and the Psychological department, it'll only be a matter of time before she's a bonafide research subject."

"I'd argue that she already is," the young Inquisitor interjected with a shrug. "She's an enigma and you can tell they're practically salivating over her potential. Even she's aware of what she is to them."

Chief Takarada took a long pensive moment before speaking again, "You know, I noticed something about her in the file that was shared with me…"

"Sir?"

Their conversation was cut short once the office door opened and Yukihito stepped back inside. Lory leaned back and put on a teasing, playful smile, cajoling his young employee.

"Well, enjoy your courtship, boy. I do hope you'll let me meet her before you choose a date for the wedding!"

Ren remained silent at the man's abrupt change in topic and rose from his seat to join Yukihito by the door. Looking back to confirm that there was nothing further to discuss, he saw his superior wave them off with a hand. He wondered what else Lory meant to tell him before their conversation was interrupted. Hopefully, he would find some other time to talk to him about it

"Have a good evening, sir," he bid the man farewell.

* * *

Kyoko sat at the desk near the front right corner of the classroom and kept her eyes focused on the book before her while taking careful notes. Though she had to endure the stares of her classmates in that spot, the majority of them were directed at her back. It helped avoid the awkward eye contact that would ensue, but did nothing for the feeling of being scrutinized by over a dozen pairs of eyes. The biggest trade-off was that it was the closest to the door, allowing her to be the first to leave the room once they were dismissed.

Dr. Asami mandated that she start attending several introductory-level classes in the meantime while they awaited a response from the Investigation division. Since all of her other sessions had been cancelled in favor of working with the Inquisitor, Kyoko had an overabundance of time. Time, she hoped she would be able to use trying to wrack her brain and reclaim her lost memories. Instead, she now only had a few hours each evening after classes to make an attempt, but it seemed to be for the best. Every time she tried to remember anything about the day she was found in the courtyard by the library resulted in a big, resounding nothing. A nothing that was often accompanied by throbbing headaches and temporary unconsciousness. Nothing new there.

Since a new academic quarter was starting, it made sense to get her on the roster so that she would not miss out on any lessons. She was given a provisional entry into the Academy's training program and an ID card to access the Educational department buildings, but only during class hours. Kanae helped her get the books she would need and would often be her escort to and from classes most days as she also had classes to attend. During one of their many conversations, Kyoko learned that the other young woman only had her Awakening about a year prior. As such, she was still required to finish her required supplementary education despite her abilities earning her an immediate apprenticeship in the hospital.

The class she currently sat in was Academy History. The professor at the front of the room droned on about the beginnings of the Academy after the Boom happened over a century ago. The Boom was the sudden surge in births of children with abilities across the world. While there were reports of abilities surfacing prior to this, they were few and far between and, in most cases, they were labelled as aberrants and shunned from society. Abilities soon became commonplace and generally accepted, but assimilating into everyday life was still a difficulty for a large number of people.

Developed countries began forming research centers that sought to study and understand the various abilities that their citizens displayed and help find ways to integrate them into society where they would be most useful. Word spread among them and the research centers began to pool their resources and representatives from each would meet with one another to trade ideas and come up with best practices to implement. Thus, the foundations of the first Academy locations were built in these countries. Soon, developing countries were invited to establish Academies in their communities with help from the network of larger countries.

The Academies grew in popularity and so did their local influence. As the years passed, they quickly expanded their activities from research to include medicine, education and administration funded by donations and revenue from the few services for which they charged money. Each country's central Academy was led by an Assembly; a council of several individuals with high-level abilities. In turn, the premier of each Assembly sat on the Union; a large congress comprised of representatives from each country.

As central Academies became more and more involved with their country's governing bodies, they soon began to receive subsidies from tax revenues to help their efforts. But, with the additional funds, came demands. Many governments wanted to be more aggressive in identifying citizens with abilities; rather than waiting for individuals to come to the Academy, they were to be pursued from the moment of their Awakening to be properly categorized and trained. The majority of Academies agreed with this approach since it allowed them to properly prepare individuals for life with their abilities and, hopefully, prevent them from straying down a path where they would use their skills for unlawful activities. Some Academies were able to resist the governmental pressure by relying solely on grants from wealthy benefactors and businesses, but many relented.

Kyoko knew the majority of this from her previous schooling, but the inner hierarchy and political positioning of the Academy was something new to her. Unfortunately, the monotone with which the information was being presented to her made it difficult for her to stay engaged. Her thoughts would drift periodically and she would have to reel herself back in to focus on the notes she wrote neatly in her book. At least her next class would be more interesting.

It had only been a few days since she started but she already found she enjoyed her Introduction to Abilities class the most. Professor Hiroaki Ogata was the living definition of 'delicate,' with slight features, fair hair and skin and a soft voice. However, he never failed to give a fascinating lecture. In the very first class, he explained the difference between Kinetics and Paths—the general classification terms for the majority of currently manifested abilities—by throwing a marker at a student. It sailed in a gentle arc across the classroom and landed on top of the head of one of the students in the third row. Said student looked confused and somewhat irritated until the Professor said he could throw the marker back at him or anyone else in the room. He threw it at the friend beside him who laughed the loudest at his apparent misfortune.

"A Kinetic is someone who can influence the environment around them, like I did by throwing the marker the first time," he explained. "However, a Path is someone who can influence people, as I did by suggesting you retaliate."

There was something to be said for having a quiet voice as it caused the entire class to quiet down so they could hear him as he spoke. He smiled slightly as the look of dawning comprehension crossed the faces of most of his students. Kyoko knew in an instant that he would be her favorite instructor.

It also helped that he was assigned as her advisor and temporary custodian while she was attending classes. As the long-time friend of Dr. Asami, he did it more as a personal favor than an official request. When the word quickly spread to the other students about her unique situation, nasty rumors inevitably followed and it was nice to have at least one authority figure looking out for her. Being a sympath, Professor Ogata was especially sensitive to her apprehension towards her classmates and impressed upon her that he would make himself available should she need to talk to someone.

She was in his class half an hour later, notebook open and ready for what she was sure would be another interesting lecture. The lesson plan for the class displayed on the board at the front indicated the chapter that would be discussed. Opening her textbook, she smothered a sigh at the title. Kyoko was never ignorant of the fact that her hometown was featured in many books in the last ten years. However, she hoped this particular topic would not be touched on until later. Her head shook slightly, clearing the thoughts from her mind. It did not matter as her classmates would most likely never learn where she was born. One could only imagine how their stares would intensify the moment they found out she was from Keypointe.

* * *

 **WE LIKE LONGER CHAPTERS, YES WE DO: And I prefer to write them longer if I have the time but this will have to suffice. I wish I had more time to update this weekly but I'm so busy right now, I barely had spare time to finish this chapter and I have nothing started for the next one. Okay, so part of that may be my fault for posting on Tumblr instead of writing but I'm still here just like I promised!** **Getting this up today is my birthday present to myself.**

 **Anyway, the holidays are fast approaching and I'm hoping to at least get two more chapters in before I have to travel at the end of the year. So, keep your fingers crossed, hop on one foot and throw in any other strange-but-effective luck rituals you happen to know (but don't hold your breath; that's probably not a good idea). See you again soon (hopefully)!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	6. Exploration

**CHAPTER 5: EXPLORATION**

The day finally arrived and Kyoko was happy to discover that she was not nervous. Jittery from excitement, perhaps, but certainly not nervous. Dr. Asami gave her the good news at the end of the previous week that her first session would start in the week following. At last, she could finally start making headway towards uncovering the secrets locked in her mind. Her foot jiggled impatiently as she stared at the door and waited. He arrived minutes later, dressed in his usual somber attire and accompanied by the same man who immediately took up his post outside the door. Her fingers idly played with the edge of her sweater as she waited for him to take his seat across from her.

"I'm glad we get the chance to do this again," she said once he was seated.

"I see you made good on your threat," he nodded briefly. "I was told you have refused to see anyone else to the point that they gave up and enrolled you in classes."

"No point in trying the same ineffective method expecting different results," she shrugged. "So, do you have any ideas as to what we should do?"

He shook his head, "Perhaps we should simply pick up where we left off?"

"That's fine but, would you mind if I made a small request?" Kyoko asked timidly.

"That would depend on what it is."

"You said before I could enter my mind on my own with practice," she said, clasping her hands together on top the table at which they sat. "Can you teach me how to do that? I want to be able to look around up there between our meetings so, if I find anything, we can focus on that the next time you're here."

"That is typically something taught to telepaths once they have Awakened and started their training," he watched as her mouth pushed further and further into a pout as he spoke. "However, I am not disinclined to show you the basics."

Her face suddenly split into a beaming grin and he nearly winced at the brightness. The smile stirred something vaguely familiar in him; it was foggy and floated just at the edges of his conscious thoughts, like the faintest remnant of a memory.

"Well, let's get started, shall we?" she chirped happily.

He had her picture herself in a long, winding hallway with a door at the end. As she traversed it, he spoke to her from the other side of the door so that she knew if she was getting closer. It was the tried and true method by which most telepaths are trained to access their minds. Thinking in terms of metaphors was usually the easiest way to get anyone to understand complex concepts and was especially effective when it came to understanding mental abilities. Kyoko began to run down the hallway as quickly as she could to get to the door. She noticed it was certainly nice to run where it was impossible to get tired.

"You need to slow down," she heard his voice call from further down the hallway.

"What? Why? Aren't I supposed to be heading for the door?" she asked, confused.

"Yes, but you need to move carefully and deliberately and pay close attention to the details of the hallway as you move through it," Ren instructed.

"O…kay?"

"In order to do this again without my help, you need to _know_ this hallway as it will be unique only to you. If you imagine a different hallway when you try this again, you will fail," he explained patiently.

"Oh," she paused. "That actually makes a lot of sense."

"Now, try to make a note of any interesting details or odd features as you go forward," he said encouragingly.

She turned around and started again from where she began and adjusted her pace to one of a casual stroll. Admiring the pattern of the teal and wheat colored brocade wallpaper, she also took note of the whorled knots in the lacquered wood panels of wainscoting. Frosted glass sconces were placed about every fifteen steps, just slightly above eye-level. Paintings in gilded, ornate frames were hung about every fifty steps and often featured animals, landscapes and buildings. However, one painting in particular caused her to stop abruptly when she spotted it. A surprised laugh echoed down the hallway as she doubled over in front of the painting.

"Are you alright?" Ren asked, hearing her through the door.

"Yes," she managed between giggles. "I just found a painting of a cat dressed up like those old portraits of royalty with the elaborate white neck ruff things."

"I see," his voice sounded a bit strange and she heard him clear is throat. "It sounds as if you are closer."

"Yea, I can see the door now, but I'm taking my time like you suggested," she called back.

"Good, then your next attempt will be that much easier."

When she eventually reached the door, he instructed her to open it herself taking care to note how the knob felt in her hands and how far she had to turn it before it unlatched and opened. All of this was important to ensure she could replicate the experience. Once she was through, he promptly had her start over from the beginning. They continued through several more attempts until he was satisfied with her progress. With their remaining time, they approached the large walled off area they previously located and both stared at it thoughtfully.

"I wonder if the door is even the way in," Kyoko finally spoke her thoughts aloud.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if this was made by someone else to keep me out, they wouldn't make the actual entrance so easily accessible even if it's well secured," she explained.

"You think this is a feint?" Ren asked dubiously.

"Yea, if you think about it," she nodded. "If whoever did this ever wanted to get back in there at some point, I doubt they'd make the way in that obvious."

"Why would they want to come back if their only intention was to keep you away from it?"

"I—," she faltered. "But, if that's the case, why didn't they just erase my memories?"

"That would be impossible," he corrected. "If someone could erase memories, my job would be extremely difficult. I cannot extract what someone does not remember. So far, no one has exhibited an ability that allows them to do that."

"Oh, right. Sorry," her face flushed with embarrassment.

"No need to apologize. It was a legitimate question," Ren said, trying to think of a way to distract her to prevent any further distress. "Instead, maybe we can inspect the perimeter for further hints?"

She shook her head, "Let's save that for another day. I don't think we have enough time left to take a proper look anyway. Perhaps we should look at the door again after all."

When they made their way over to where they located the door during their last exploration, they noticed it was no longer there. After some searching, it was now around the corner on the other wall. Kyoko wondered for a moment if her mind was playing tricks on her, then groaned at the pun she inadvertently made. She noticed Ren looking oddly at her as she rolled her eyes at her own triteness but he remained silent. Briefly, she considered explaining herself, but thought better of it as she assumed he most likely would not find it amusing or worthy of comment.

"So, this thing can move now?" she asked incredulously.

"It would appear so," he agreed. "Possibly a defense mechanism that was triggered after we examined it last time."

"That's right! Didn't you touch something that severed the connection?"

"I thought so, at least," he said with a slight shrug.

"Alright, then where exactly was your hand when it happened?"

An eyebrow raised in a high arc above one eye but his face remained neutral as he regarded her calmly, "Are you asking me to show you on the door where I touched it?"

"Well, I figured we could replicate what happened and—" her train of thought was swiftly derailed once she processed what he said. "Did you just make a joke?"

He nodded, his face remained inexpressive except for the slight twitch at the corner of his mouth.

"So, the Inquisitor's got a sense of humor," she sounded impressed. "I never would've guessed."

"Is that so unbelievable?"

"We've only interacted twice at this point and each time you've been nothing but stoic," she countered. "I don't really have much else to base my assumption on."

"Fair enough," he relented.

Kyoko allowed herself a brief chuckle and shook her head, "You said it with such a straight face, I almost believed you were serious. Anyway, where were we?"

"I suppose my humor is a bit darker than most but spending as much time in and around courts as I have, it was bound to influence me sooner or later," Ren walked up to the door and stretched out a hand, making sure to hover a couple inches away from the surface, "It was right around here, I believe."

When she came closer to place her fingers where he indicated, he reflexively reached out and grabbed her wrist. She looked up at him in confusion and saw a flicker of concern cross his face. Did he think he was trying to protect her from something?

"What?" she blinked at him. "If I get kicked out, you'll still be here, right? Then you can tell me if the door moved."

"Right," he quickly let go of her and stepped back. "My apologies."

Pressing her hand firmly against the door, Kyoko waited but nothing happened. She frowned at the door and pulled back to where her fingers just lightly touched the surface. Still nothing.

"Are you sure this is where you—" her hand shifted slightly as she turned to look up at Ren and her sentence was cut short when she immediately vanished.

The suddenness of it caused him to hesitate for a second but, once he remembered what he was supposed to do, he looked towards the door. It, too, had disappeared, leaving nothing but flat, smooth wall behind. Looking around for the door's new location, he heard another door open and close in the distance. When he turned in the direction of the sound, he saw Kyoko running towards him. She skidded to a halt when she got closer and looked up at him with an expectant expression on her face.

"So? Did it move?" she asked impatiently.

"…Yes," he answered after a brief pause. "More importantly, how did you get back here so quickly?"

"I just did what you showed me earlier," she explained nonchalantly before switching back to the original topic. "Did you see where it moved to this time?"

"I have not located it yet, no," he continued to stare at her in shock.

"Oh, well, we're almost out of time anyway. I glanced at the clock when I got pushed out. Guess there was really no point in me coming back here," she rambled.

"It's fine," he said, still stunned.

"Actually, I have no idea how to leave," she remembered suddenly. "Do I just go back the way I came?"

"That would probably be the easiest way."

"Okay, I'll see you back in the room!" she called as she ran back to her door.

Ren stood there, bewildered, for a few more seconds before extracting himself from her mind. When he saw her again sitting across the table from him, she smiled proudly. He quickly collected himself before rising from his chair. Kyoko followed suit and walked around the table to shake his hand in gratitude.

"You look awfully pleased for such little progress," he said while returning the gesture.

"Yes, but now I can explore on my own and we also learned something that may be important later on," she replied cheerfully

He nodded. "Soon, you will no longer need my help."

"Don't be silly, of course I need you," her face colored a bit seconds later at the insinuation of her flippant remark. "I mean, there are still a lot of things about this that I won't understand without your expertise so you're not getting out of this that easily."

"That was not my intention," he assured her.

"Good, anyhow, I should let you get on with your day. I'm sure you've got places to be and minds to invade," she waved a hand as if to dismiss him, but smiled jokingly.

"Something like that," much to her surprise, he smiled back.

Ren walked over to the door and turned to nod farewell before he opened it. Kyoko gave him a small wave in return, mischief dancing in her eyes.

"Just don't tell your co-workers about your budding career as a comedian," she teased. "They might faint from shock."

The sound of a short exhalation through his nose told her that was the closest she would get to a laugh from him. For now, at least; she would have to try harder next time now that she knew he actually was capable of appreciating humor. It was a pleasant surprise to see how much more interesting he was when he let some of his guard down. She found herself wanting to learn more about the person behind all the professional armor. Hopefully, she would have enough time with him to find out.

* * *

The afternoon after her classes that day left Kyoko feeling mentally drained as she trudged down the nearly empty hallway. Credit where credit was due, she was impressed by the fact that an Inquisitor could infiltrate several minds each day. They only spent one hour inside her mind and it left her somewhat exhausted. Then again, the repetitive drills Ren had her practice probably did not help matters. She passed near the door to a classroom when a hand reached out from it and pulled her inside. Once the door shut behind her, she turned to find the owner of the hand that held on to her forearm and was met with a familiar face.

"Long time, no see," he said quietly with a smile.

"Sho?" she asked, clearly surprised to see him. "How did you find me?"

"I heard some other students talking about you last week and it wasn't hard to figure out what building you'd be in from there." he explained. "So, what's going on? I heard they haven't been able to make much progress with you."

She gave him the abridged version of everything that happened since she last saw him. As she spoke, she saw the smile on his face slowly transform into a frown. Once she explained her current arrangements with Inquisitor Tsuruga, his frown deepened into a scowl. He shook his head in disbelief once she finished her recap.

"You're letting an Inquisitor in your head?!" he hissed in a screamed whisper. "Not to mention the worst one of the bunch. Kyoko, what are you thinking?"

"I was thinking that I want to know what is being kept from me. I want to know why I can't remember certain things without fainting," her voice continued to rise in frustration. "I want an explanation for all of this, Sho!"

"Shh! Keep your voice down!" Sho looked warily towards the door.

"Why are you whispering in the first place?" she asked.

"Someone might find us in here," he said, his eyes shifting back from the door to her face.

"So? I'm allowed to be here just as much as you—" she hesitated when a thought occurred to her. "Are you afraid of being seen with me?"

He looked askance but refused to answer. Kyoko frowned at him in disappointment, her frustration quickly transforming to anger. Her hands balled into fists at her sides.

"Seriously?!" she spat in disbelief.

"It's not that I'm afraid, really. I'd just rather avoid a bunch of annoying questions," he said weakly.

"Oh, I'm _so sorry_ my presence is such a burden to you," she apologized, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I guess I was wrong when I thought we were friends."

"We _are_ friends," he defended. "Why else would I come find you to see how you were doing?"

"Well, as you can see, I'm just fine," she held out her hands and gestured around her. "Now why don't you run along back to your normal friends and maybe, when I get my classification, you'll be less embarrassed to be around me."

Kyoko turned on her heels and stalked out of the classroom, slamming the door behind her. Knowing he would not follow after her and risk being seen, she felt no need to rush as she exited the building and made her way to the woods by the hospital. She needed a place to calm down and her reflexes kicked in, pulling her towards the trees as if she were on auto-pilot.

* * *

Kanae found her half an hour later when she noticed a pair of bright red sneakers attached to pale legs dangling from a low branch of a tree along the footpath. Looking up, she saw the rest of the young woman as she perched along the branch staring into the cluster of leaves intermingled with patches of sky above her. Her books were neatly deposited on a nearby bench.

"If you were going to run away to live in a tree, the least you could've done was tell somebody," Kanae's voice projected upwards.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry I left without telling you!" Kyoko gasped looking at the woman standing below her. "I just needed to clear my head a little. I guess I ended up here without thinking."

"You mean you subconsciously climbed a tree?" she asked in disbelief.

"I did it a lot I was little," the younger woman laughed nervously.

She jumped down from the branch and landed neatly on both feet. Brushing the dirt from her hands, she straightened her skirt and went to pick up her books before rejoining Kanae. The two women then turned to walk towards the apartments.

"I sense no emotional turbulence from you," Kanae noted. "I take it your strange, arboreal therapy helped?"

Kyoko laughed again, then nodded.

"When I was younger, I would go into the woods behind my house and climb the trees there whenever I was upset. When you're little, all your problems seem much smaller from ten feet or so above the ground," she recounted. "I haven't done it in years, especially since the city has so few trees, but old habits die hard, I guess."

"Well, if what I've learned is true, then calming rituals are supposed to be healthy so I have no place to judge you," Kanae shrugged, adjusting the books she held in her arms. "Even if it is a little unorthodox."

"Thanks for coming to find me," Kyoko gave her a grateful smile, "I suppose we should head back before someone else realizes I haven't returned from classes yet and you get in trouble."

"Not like it matters," the other woman sounded unconcerned. "They'll just find someone else to accompany you."

"True, but I actually _like_ being around you," Kyoko admitted quietly. "You're probably the closest thing I have to a friend right now so I'd rather not lose that if I can help it."

Kanae blinked and looked at her in surprise. She was certain Kyoko had mentioned having another friend before; the guy she used to live with, if she remembered correctly. Somehow, their relationship must have changed. It was a logical deduction that this was probably the cause of her sudden bout of tree-climbing. She began to feel sorry for Kyoko—because of her abilities, it was difficult not to—but she quickly dismissed the thought from her head. Her assignment was only to watch over this person. There was no point in emotionally bonding with someone who she would probably never see again once her formal training was complete.

Still, she could not deny that her company was more enjoyable than most. They always conversed so easily with each other and it made the time go by quickly. It is said that empaths constantly carry the heavy burden of identifying with the feelings of another. However, Kanae found that, when it came to this peculiar girl walking beside her, she did not mind in the least.

* * *

 **LATE, BUT (HOPEFULLY) WORTH THE WAIT: After the long holiday weekend, I had some serious writer's block and couldn't make any progress on this chapter whatsoever. I finally got my groove back a couple days ago and managed to churn out the rest of the chapter. While I'd like to get one more done before I go on vacation for the rest of the year, it probably won't be possible.**

 **So, if I do manage to update again this month, I hope you'll be pleasantly surprised. I probably will be as well! If not, I wish you all Happy Holidays as I depart for my first real vacation in 5 years. See you in the New Year!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	7. Archives

**CHAPTER 6: ARCHIVES**

Ren finished giving his verbal report to the judge of the findings from his recently completed extraction. Everything he found perfectly corroborated with the evidence already gathered in the case, so there was no need for a secondary telepath to be involved. He was simply the final nail in the coffin, as it were, for the accused. Once his obligation was completed, he immediately retreated to the restroom to thoroughly wash his hands—a poor substitution for the scalding hot shower he really wanted at the moment—but it would have to suffice. It became a habit of his when he had to perform an extraction on a particularly unsavory individual. Instances, such as this one, would leave him feeling uneasy and generally disgusted by what he witnessed to the point that he actually felt little remorse when his probing would render the other person unconscious.

He shook his head to himself as his fingers scrubbed at the back of his hands for the fifth time; the skin turning a vibrant red beneath the constant stream of hot water. How could someone even do such a thing? Especially to children! Ren wondered if he had any alcohol in his apartment, or if he should to make a stop on his way home that evening. Drinking away the vivid memories of what he had seen was not an ideal solution, but it at least made harder to recall the small, wide-eyed, dirty faces and whimpering voices when he eventually fell asleep. The rare, sympathetic look he was given by the handler of the case that morning made a lot more sense now.

Yukihito eyed his ward warily after he returned from the restroom. The young man always did a superb job of remaining mostly expressionless in the face of his duties but, to anyone who dared observe him closely, there were the occasional tells that he also struggled under the burden of his profession like his peers. Today, it was the pink tinge on his freshly-washed hands and the occasional dead-eyed stare into the distance when he thought no one was looking. When they stopped at a small grocery before he dropped him off at his apartment for the evening, he casually looked the other way from the paper bag Ren carried out of the store. Today had been a particularly trying day and far be it from him to reprimand the man for wanting to escape from it; even if it was just for a short time.

Locking his apartment door securely behind him, Ren let out the long sigh he held in for the better part of the day. He placed the bag on the table before heading to his room to change into a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt. The floor seemed like a better place for him to sit than the couch, he decided. This was not a couch-appropriate time; not for what he was about to do. A glass bottle of tea-colored liquid was removed from the paper bag he brought in with him and he carefully uncapped it before pouring a generous amount into the glass he fetched from the kitchen. He took a sip, letting the burning liquid sear its way down his throat before tilting his head back to rest on the couch behind him, closing his eyes and retreating into his own mind.

His memories were stored in what looked like an old, extensive library housed in cozy French Provincial-type house nestled between large, willowy trees and ample shrubbery; high shelves filled the interior with books of all shapes and sizes. The books were his memories—sorted by date—and each contained a recollection of notable events with detailed illustrations. Not everyone's archives looked, and functioned, the same as his did; in fact, he encountered some that took the form of a cluttered garage, a lavish wine cellar and even a barren room with only an old computer terminal.

An open area of comfortable, plush chairs grouped in twos and threes with small tables between them resided in the center of his archives as a 'reading area' where one can sit to view the memory they selected from the shelf. On one of the chairs, in the far corner of the room, sat a boy in his mid-teens with golden hair. In his hands looked to be a freshly printed, hardcover book with a fancy dust jacket.

"I figured I would find you here."

"Not like I have a whole lot of other places to go around here," the boy said, raising his head only slightly to peer his green eyes over the top of the book. "What's up?"

"I got us something decent tonight," Ren offered. "After the day I had, I thought it might help."

"Is it the one with the gold lettering on the green label?" the boy said excitedly. "Awesome!"

The Ren sitting on the floor took another sip while the Ren in his mind shook his head at the boy.

"I always feel as if I'm corrupting a minor when you look like that."

"That's because you haven't looked like this since this age," the teen shrugged. "I'm still you, you know."

Ren nodded, "As I am also still you."

"Well, it's always nice when we can get together like this," he said, finally putting the book down on the table beside him. "Two strange coping mechanisms just… you know… helping each other cope!"

"So eloquently put," Ren raised an amused eyebrow.

"Oh, whatever, I'm not the one who has a way with fancy words like you," the boy scoffed.

"I take it you've seen the ones from today?" Ren gestured towards the book that now sat on the small table.

"Yea," he whistled. "What a piece of work that one was. No wonder you brought the good stuff home."

Neither of them went into any further detail or the purpose of the entire evening would be put at risk. As Ren continued to drink, he conversed idly with himself in his head until both of them started to feel the effects of the alcohol.

"At least tomorrow'll be better," slurred the boy.

"Hm?"

"Tomorrow you get to see 'er again," a wide grin stretched across the his face.

"Ah, yes," Ren said, finally comprehending.

"She's nice," he had a wistful tone. "And smart! I've always liked her."

"We've seen her a total of two times," Ren rolled his eyes and the boy just shrugged again.

"I wanna be friends with her."

"We don't _do_ friends," Ren reminded.

"If it's her, we could make an exet—an expe—a special case," the much younger man stuttered.

Ren drew a hand slowly down his face in exhaustion, "I'm going to bed."

"Good idea!" the boy chirped, before falling backwards into the chair's cushions. "Don' wanna be too tired for t'morrow."

Bidding the teenager goodnight, Ren left his mindscape and took the glass and half-empty bottle into the kitchen before retiring to his bed. Breathing out another sigh, his head touched the pillow. Tomorrow was another day. And, tomorrow, he certainly would get to see her again. There was never a dull moment with her around and she seemed to be full of nothing but surprises. He wondered what she would surprise him with this time around

* * *

"Come on! I need to show you something," Kyoko called over her shoulder as she walked quickly towards a clump of trees.

Once he arrived for their session that morning, she wasted no time in getting started.

She led him to a clearing where a small pond sat in the center surrounded by bushes of various sizes covered in brightly colored, pristine flowers. The most strikingly peculiar thing about the scene was that there were flowers of several different varieties residing together on the same plant. Irises, lilies, chrysanthemums, roses and the like all bloomed together harmoniously with each other as if they were supposed to grow this way naturally.

"I found this last night when I went looking for the new location of the door. I decided to follow the stream near there to see where it led."

"I am assuming you discovered something interesting here?"

"Got it in one," she pointed with a smile. "Look closely at the flowers."

She pointed to one of the blooms and he noticed all of them glittered with droplets of moisture. Upon further examination, there appeared to be something moving within the liquid. Ren squinted, trying to make out what it was when it dawned on him. That was no mere dew on those flowers.

"I feel I must congratulate you," he said, turning to her. "You have the most unique memory archive I have seen to date."

Her eyes opened wide, "Th—these are my memories?!"

"It would appear so," he nodded.

"How am I supposed to view them?"

He looked back at the flowers for a moment then his eyes rested on the nearby pond and an idea formed.

"Try dripping the liquid into the water, perhaps?"

Her mouth gaped in awe, "That's brillant!"

"I have my moments," he smothered a smile.

She quickly picked one of the blossoms from the plant nearest her and another one immediately popped into its place. Then, she carefully stepped towards the water's edge with it. Only at that moment did she pause before proceeding. A curious look came over her face and Ren tried to decipher what it could possibly mean. When she looked over at him and opened her mouth, she took a second to breathe in before she spoke.

"I just realized that this could potentially be a very embarrassing or personal memory."

Now knowing the reason for her discomfort, he immediately turned around to face the hedge behind him.

"You didn't have to do that," she assured in a nervous tone. "I just panicked for a second but you've already been inside my head so I probably shouldn't even care at this point."

"No, you have every right to the privacy of your own memories," he said, refusing to turn back around. "Technically, I am only allowed to view the memories of those who have been taken into custody and are to be investigated and tried for a crime. As an innocent party, I have no right to access yours."

"Oh," she hesitated, then smiled. "Thank you for being so considerate."

She saw his shoulders raise slightly in a faint shrug but he said nothing further. Lightly shaking the flower she held, she watched a small droplet fall towards the surface of the water below, creating numerous gentle ripples upon impact. As the ripples began to settle, sure enough, it was like watching a recording of a moment in her life. Much to her relief, it was not an embarrassing memory at all. She smiled a little as she watched her own high school graduation ceremony again, just as she saw it with her own eyes the first time.

While she wanted to watch the whole thing, she knew she was on a time limit. Not knowing how to stop or pause the memory playback—sadly, ponds did not have remote controls or anything similar—she went with her instinct and reached her hand into the water. After swishing her fingers back and forth a few times, the images began to dissipate. It tingled against her skin as she did it; not because the water itself was cold but something else entirely. The sensation gave rise to a tiny idea in the back of her mind and, as it grew the longer she pondered it, the less she could resist giving in to it.

"I want to try something," she announced aloud, then realized Ren still had his back to her. "Oh, you can turn around now."

He did so and looked at her expectantly.

"I felt something weird when I touched the water after I dropped my memory in there," she began to explain. "Do memories often have some sort of energy?"

"In a general sense, yes," he said with a nod. "Memories that are tied to stronger emotions often put out a sort of 'energy' as you call it. It is a fairly reliable method by which I can quickly sort through the memories of others when performing an extraction. Since each emotion emits a different type of energy, I can easily bypass certain memories just by touching them."

While he spoke, Kyoko's eyes darted around the clearing as she tapped a finger thoughtfully against her cheek. They came to rest on a tree that had large leaves with a curved surface that almost looked like a small, green bowl. Rushing over to snatch one of the leaves from a lower branch, she ran back and began gingerly touching the droplets on each flower before pulling it off and shaking the liquid into the leaf cupped in her other hand. She continued to do this with several more blooms until a small pool had formed in the leaf's basin.

"What exactly are you planning?" Ren asked, curiosity finally getting the better of him.

"You'll see," she answered cryptically, with a sly smile and then motioned for him to follow her.

Her constant impetuousness whenever they worked together like this was almost starting to make him giddy. However, he would be a liar if he said the experience was unpleasant. It had honestly become a refreshing highlight to his days and weeks that often droned by at a depressing pace. So, he glibly followed behind her as she marched determinedly away from the clearing and through the trees.

Kyoko continued to walk until the ever-present wall in her mind loomed before them. Apparently she had found the new location of the door after it warped for the second time. Taking care to not spill the contents of the leaf in her hands, she approached the door and gently tilted her wrists to pour the liquid down its surface. Ren wondered what could possibly come of this, if anything, when he heard her gasp and the now empty leaf fluttered to the ground.

The whole wall seemed to shudder and then, as if it were a faulty hologram, it flickered and they caught a brief glimpse of what lay beyond the wall. The forest from which they came continued on beyond the wall as well as the stream that ran along it. Nothing seemed to be different about other than the fact that it was separated from the rest of the mindscape. In an instant, the wall was back in place and its solid, dull color met their eyes once again.

They both stared at the wall in silence for several breaths and Ren was the first to break from his trance. He blinked and looked over at the girl who stood, with her mouth hanging open, facing the wall.

"Did you… know that would happen?" he asked slowly so as not to startle her.

Kyoko shook her head and looked back at him, "I didn't but, since you said the sign over the door said there were bad memories in there, I figured I'd use a bunch of happy memories, since I now know what kind of energy they produce, to see if I could overload it or something."

Once again, she had rendered him speechless. She had an uncanny knack for doing that. Just like she had an uncanny knack for quick thinking and resourcefulness. Did she really just come up with that on the fly? He shoved hands in his pockets in an attempt to look casual and hide just how much she had unsettled him with her cleverness.

"You must want to try this again." he said, trying to appear calm.

"Of _course_ I do!" she exclaimed, her cheeks suddenly flushed with color and excitement. "You saw what happened to the wall, this might be our ticket in!"

Once they made their way back to the clearing, Kyoko grabbed another leaf and started scanning the flowers again to begin collecting droplets.

"You can help, you know," she suggested. "It would go a lot faster that way."

"Are you alright with me touching your memories?" he asked cautiously.

"Nothing bad has happened to me so far with you here," she shrugged, then threw him a bright smile. "I trust you."

He fought hard against a shiver of… _something_ as it threatened to crawl down his spine at that smile. He walked as nonchalantly as he could over to one of the taller, older bushes and took a moment to look at it before doing anything else. There was something different about this particular plant. There was—for lack of a better term—a bald spot; where the other bushes around it were filled with flowers, this one had a patch completely devoid of anything but vivid green leaves.

"That's odd," he said thoughtfully.

"What is?" Kyoko suddenly appeared beside him to see what he was talking about.

"Look at that," he pointed to the area that held his attention. "See how this area has no flowers?"

"Huh, I wonder why it looks like that."

"I have a feeling these are the bulk of your missing memories," he intoned. "They must be fairly old by the looks of it."

"How do you know that?"

"See how all the bushes on this side are larger with thicker branches?" once she nodded in response, he continued, pointing to illustrate his explanation. "These would be your older memories as they reside on much more established plants as opposed to the ones over there on smaller, younger ones."

"Wow," she breathed. "Guess that's why you're the expert."

"Not exactly an expert," he corrected. "I merely happen to have some experience with things like this."

She shrugged, as if to dismiss his humility, "So how old do you think these are?"

"Probably no more than 12 years old, I would guess," he said, sounding mostly sure of himself. "But you'll be able to know for certain if you look at one of the available memories near the area."

"Just like floral filing cabinets," she remarked, then plucked what looked to be a daisy from to top edge of the bare patch.

Knowing what she was about to do, he remained turned away from the pond and continued to look at the hedge before him. He felt a light tap on his shoulder and he turned to face the young woman.

"I already said I trusted you," she said with a slight chuckle. "I'm not entirely sure why, but I do. So, it's okay if you see this."

Kyoko took his hand and led him over to the pond and he looked down at where their hands were now joined. It was a strange experience being the mental projection of yourself touching the mental projection of another while inside their mind. Somehow, it felt both normal and abnormal at the exact same time. He tried to clear his mind of the thought as the more he pondered it, the more bizarre it began to feel. Not to mention the fact that she did it so casually like it was nothing. Gently dislodging his hand from hers once they reached their destination, he looked at the placid water surface as she dropped the memory into it.

 _They saw a group of legs clothed in dark slacks before them and nothing else. The picture shifted as Kyoko in the memory must have leaned to one side to see a line of people leading up to a building that looked to be an official government office of some sort. Large, red and white banners hung on the walls of the building on either side of the main entrance. They looked somewhat familiar to Ren but, before he could fully recognize them, the focus changed as the person looked up towards whoever stood next to them and they saw a woman who looked like a much older version of Kyoko. Her hair was pulled into a low, tight bun and her features taut as she frowned at the line before them._

 _"Mama, why do we have to stand in line like this?" a tiny voice asked._

 _"Everyone has been required to be evaluated to make sure nothing bad happened to them," the woman answered._

 _"Because everyone fell asleep at the same time the other day?" the voice asked further._

 _"Yes, Kyoko, that is why."_

The realization of what Kyoko and her mother were speaking about in her memory slowly dawned on Ren as he watched the scene unfold before him. That was why those banners looked familiar. These memories were not quite twelve years old. They were actually only a little more than ten years old. As he fully comprehended what that meant, he was shaken from his reverie by the sound of a clock chiming.

Their hour was up.

He managed to get through their farewells on professionalism alone before walking out of the building with his attendant while still in a half daze.

* * *

"That was what you were trying to tell me the other day," Ren said, barging in to Chief Takarada's office later that day.

Lory spun in his seat and looked up at the younger man in surprise at the unexpected intrusion. He managed to leave his 'shadow' behind as Yukihito had some auxiliary paperwork to complete. Seizing the opportunity, he hurried up to his superior's office. It was time to have another chat with the man.

"What are you talking about?"

"You were about to tell me she's from Keypointe," Ren's voice took on an impassioned tone.

"Oh, _that,_ " Lory said disinterestedly, understanding what this was all about now. "Yes, that is indeed what I meant to tell you before we were interrupted."

"Why didn't you tell me that to begin with?" he demanded.

"It wasn't especially important, but I did find it interesting," he noticed the odd look on Ren's face. "Why, what's happened?"

He hurriedly explained what they discovered earlier that day during his session with Kyoko. Lory listened with interest to everything he said. Once he had finished, the Chief sat there for a long, thoughtful moment.

"I know what you're thinking," he said in a warning tone. "But, if she has missing memories from before that day as well as after, considering her most recent incident, then there's little chance you had anything to do with this."

"Yes, but—" Ren was interrupted.

"No buts," Lory said sternly. "Do you still want to help her?"

"I don't even know if I can," he sounded despondent as he dropped unceremoniously into the nearest chair.

"Well, she's come this far with your help so you must be doing something right," the Chief pointed out. "Maybe once everything comes to light, you'll learn to start forgiving yourself for what happened then, hm?"

"That… might be going a bit far," Ren hesitated.

"Is it?" Lory challenged. "Is it wrong to hope that you might stop blaming yourself for what happened at Keypointe?"

* * *

 **COME ON AND SLAM ('cause I'm back from Japan): I'm sure however few of you looked me up on Tumblr, would've guessed where I ran off to. It was super fun and I _almost_ wanted to stay forever and eat myself into a coma, but I'm glad to be back. **

**This chapter is the product of jet lag and benadryl but I think I'm happy with what I've done here. I hope you like it as well! Happy New Year to all and I'll see you next update!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	8. Avoidance

**CHAPTER 7: AVOIDANCE**

It was roughly seven years ago when Lory finally had time to pay a visit to his old friends in their home country of Astetra. Even though the business with Keypointe had finally died down a little over a year before, he remained buried under paperwork and cleanup. He knew his friends had a vacation home in area in question, but they assured him they were fine and were not there at the time of the incident. They did, however, request that he visit them as soon as he could, though it was actually more of an instruction than an appeal.

He noticed that they made scant mention of their son whenever they called, which was very much unlike the overly affectionate parents—to put it mildly—he knew them to be. Thus, he was surprised by what he met upon his arrival; a sullen child in his early teens who refused to say more than a handful of words and only when directly addressed. He was frequently skipping his classes to stay at home or wander aimlessly around the city. His parents were distraught and at the end of their wits by this point. With each passing year, it seemed like he was only getting worse as he continued to close himself off. Lory sat with them at dinner that evening and they told him what little they knew.

"We told you the truth when we said we weren't in Keypointe at that time," the boy's father said, his normally bright green eyes seemed dulled by sadness. "I had to attend an Assembly session and Julie wanted to take a few things back ahead of time as we were planning to head home the following week. What we didn't tell you was that we didn't take _him_ with us. Luckily, we made it back to the house before they started closing off the roads into town."

"We found him sitting in the hallway," his mother, Julie, said nearly in tears. "None of the lights were on and he just… sat there. I asked him if he was alright and all he said was 'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to' over and over again."

"So, his Awakening caused all of that?" Lory asked in disbelief as he realized what they were insinuating. "What kind of abilities does he have?"

"That's where it gets tricky," the father said with a frown. "We can tell he has some sort of telepathic ability, but he somehow seems to be… veiling himself."

"Is that even possible?" Lory gaped, this was getting more complex by the second.

"His full abilities haven't shown themselves since that day and what little he does display, he refuses to acknowledge or use," the man let out a sad laugh. "Except when he 'convinces' Julie not to make dinner. If it weren't for that, we probably wouldn't have noticed he'd changed at all."

"I'm surprised your Academy hasn't caught on to him yet. You'd think they would've picked up on his energy by now."

"We're just as confused by this as you are." Julie said softly. "But, considering how hard he's been on himself since then, it's probably for the best that the connection was never made. Lory, we don't know what to do to help him."

"Knowing you two, you've probably been too soft on him," the older man grumbled. "What do you want me to do about it?"

"I don't know, but we're out of ideas and thought maybe you knew of some way to get through to him and handle it… discreetly," the boy's father suggested.

Lory grunted but never answered as he needed some time to consider the options. Instead, he changed the subject and updated the two on what he had been doing since they last saw each other and shared a few new photos of his adorable baby granddaughter. They continued to talk late into the night while the unnaturally quiet boy read a book by himself in another part of the house until he fell asleep. When the boy awoke the next morning, he saw the man who came to visit his parents standing over him with a stern look on his face.

"Finish your official schooling here and then come to my Academy," he said, with no pretext or greeting beforehand. "Don't register with your Academy here. I will find a place for you where you don't have to hide what you are. But you have to be willing to work and you have to be willing to use your abilities."

"And if I don't?" the boy asked grumpily, brushing the mussed blond hair from his face and rubbing at his eyes.

"Then you'll stay here and continue living half a life as you have been."

"They'll find out," the boy mumbled. "About what I did."

"They haven't figured it out up until now," Lory said. "And the more you hide, the more suspicious it'll look. Your parents aren't exactly low-profile members of society. Why not come and hide in plain sight?"

"Why do this for me?"

"Because your father came to me for help. It's as simple as that," the man said with a shrug. "Now, the choice is yours; continue imprisoning yourself in your own home and run the risk of being found out or start a new life elsewhere," Lory chuckled drily at his own words. "Well, it will still be a kind of prison but, one with a bit more autonomy, at least."

The boy stared at him silently in half-disbelief before his eyes shifted to focus on the floor. There was no way he could make such a big decision right away. The man seemed to sense this and his eyes softened a little.

"You have until you finish your formal education to decide," he said, turning to leave the room. "When you do, let me know."

He placed a card on the table beside the door just before he walked out. The boy scrambled up from where he laid and went to pick it up. The back of it was blank but, when he turned it over, there was plain black text typed across it:

 _Lory Takarada, Chief Inquisitor  
_ _Psychological Investigations  
_ _01XX-XXXXX_

* * *

"I can't do this," Ren said, slumping against the chair in defeat. "You should just tell her doctor that my schedule won't allow it."

"If you give up on her, I'll make you tell her personally that you can no longer see her," Lory threatened.

"Why," the young Inquisitor demanded in frustration. "Why is this so important to you?"

"Because you can't keep shouldering the blame for something you had no hope of controlling in the first place," his superior said calmly. "How could you have known your Awakening would have caused that?"

"That doesn't mean I shouldn't be held responsible," he mumbled.

"Give me strength," Lory muttered in exasperation, looking upward. "I brought you here so you could cultivate your abilities but this place has colored your mind. Do you think yourself the same as the very people you assist with prosecuting every day?"

Ren grimaced, but face soon became thoughtful. His supervisor rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Forget I even asked," the Chief groaned. "You know, I assumed you were more sympathetic to this situation considering how quickly you agreed to help. I thought maybe you saw a bit of yourself in her. For all her bravery and confidence, she's probably just as scared of herself as you were, if not more so because she doesn't even know the limits of her abilities."

"It certainly doesn't seem that way," Ren countered.

"Perhaps," Lory relented. "She has no basis for comparison yet to know what to fear. But that does not mean she wouldn't benefit from the guidance of someone who has been through an equally difficult situation."

Ren ran a hand up over his face and through his hair and exhaled loudly. Once he had composed himself again, he looked at his supervisor and, with a slight furrow to his brow, he nodded. He knew it was pointless to try going against his superior as it would be fighting a losing battle. The problem was not that he had no desire to help her. Rather, the problem was that he preferred to avoid all reminders of that day whenever he could. It always caused him to temporarily relapse into his old behaviors which were counterproductive to his current life. He knew it was nothing more than cowardice, but it worked for him thus far.

"Fine. I will continue to work with her."

"I'll give you your next date with her off to get your head straight," Lory said, his mouth lifted up on one side. "Don't say I never did anything nice for you."

Ren was not entirely sure of the niceness of the gesture but thanked him all the same before Yukihito came to collect him.

* * *

Kyoko knew something was wrong with the Inquisitor from the moment he stood up to leave when their session was over. She was unable to determine exactly what was off, but her gut told her that the seemingly placid look he had was a facade. It bothered her to the point of distraction. While her instructors noticed that she was not as invested in the lessons as she typically is, Kanae was the first to speak up about her odd behavior.

"Okay, what's gotten into you today?"

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," Kyoko sighed.

"And _nothing_ causes you to walk into a lamppost?" Kanae said with a raised eyebrow.

Kyoko quickly sidestepped to avoid the incoming object, her arms moving awkwardly to help maintain her balance. Once she was back to her normal stride, she told Kanae a generalized story of what happened earlier.

"I wonder if I did or said something to upset him."

"Even if you did, it's not like it was intentional," Kanae pointed out. "You don't know him well enough to know better. Wouldn't it be up to him to tell you if something bothered him?"

"I guess," Kyoko said with a shrug.

"Besides, it could have nothing to do with you since you said it was right before he left. It could be about work, you know," the young woman reminded her. "His job can't be easy."

Kyoko stared at her for a moment, "I'm honestly surprised to hear someone say something so understanding."

"I'm an empath, remember?" Kanae smiled, "I can tell that most of the people who spread the rumors about him are doing so out of a combination of fear and envy."

"And, yet, most of those rumors are true," Kyoko said thoughtfully. "Well, except for that one about the guy who is now inexplicably afraid of ducks. He says he had nothing to do with that."

"You asked him?" Kanae asked, surprised.

She shook her head, "He actually told me up front about what he does. I guess he wanted me to be fully aware of what I was getting into."

"Well that was… oddly nice of him?" Kanae said, her face scrunched in confusion.

"In a very strange way, yeah," she agreed with a laugh as they continued walking.

Kyoko's worries were compounded when she was informed the next morning that her appointment the following day had been cancelled. She tried her best to remember Kanae's words and not assume that the schedule change was somehow her fault but, it was difficult to dismiss it so easily as a coincidence. To make matters worse, her now-empty time slot was to be filled with an appointment for her first psychological assessment. Just wonderful; the one person who actually helped in this whole situation was avoiding her and now she had to be evaluated to make sure she remained on the right side of sanity.

She refused to let it get to her for the remainder of the day and succeeded for the most part, but it was exhausting. Kyoko made it back to her apartment that evening and took great joy in roughly throwing her belongings where they were usually stored instead of gently placing them like she normally did. Her keys hit the table with a satisfying clatter and her bag and shoes thudded against the wall near the door as she let out a guttural sigh. When she was finally in bed that night, she wondered why the opinion of one person—who she barely knew, at that—mattered to the point that she was this concerned by the fact that _he_ could potentially be upset with her for some unspecified reason. Unable to come up with an adequate answer, she fell asleep.

* * *

Her assessment went by fairly quickly and without incident. Perhaps it was due to the scowl she wore on her face that entire morning. On top of her schedule being disrupted, her escort was replaced by someone else as Kanae had an examination. Kyoko was not happy, it showed all over her face and she was loathe to rein it in. She gave only short answers to the round of questions she endured and the doctor seemed leery of pushing her any further when she leveled her displeased glare at him. He dismissed her as quickly as possible, letting her know that she was cleared to resume her current schedule of treatment. That seemed to make things worse as her face instantly darkened at hearing it. She grumbled an abbreviated thanks and left the office.

Skipping class was a concept with which Kyoko was not normally familiar. However, this particular day convinced her that she would not be able to concentrate properly on any lessons. It was the end of the week anyway, she would just get the assignments for the following week from her instructors. She gave her escort the slip by claiming to need to use the restroom before class began. Instead, she snuck over to the library and spent the rest of the day there.

For being a library, the first floor was awfully noisy; the murmur of voices and the clicking of shoes echoed loudly off of the hard marble flooring. The second floor was decidedly better, so she spent several hours there idly looking through her class notes and made an attempt to read a few chapters ahead in her texts. As classes let out, the second floor also began to fill up, so she was forced up to the third floor in search of a new, quieter location. The stairs were a bit hard to find as they were nowhere near the main staircase that serviced the first two floors and she wondered at first if students were not allowed access. Once she was settled into her new sanctuary, Kyoko had calmed considerably since earlier in the day. She eventually decided that, since she was originally supposed to do it anyway—albeit with the help of a _certain someone_ who cancelled their appointment—she would see if she could make anymore headway on the wall in her mind.

After the first hour, she felt like banging her head against said wall. She actually did end up doing that before sitting down and staring at it. Having lucked into the majority of her discoveries thus far, Kyoko was having a hard time determining how to proceed. Each attempt to pour the collected droplets of her memories on the door continued to produce the same effect regardless of the quantity. Resting her chin against her propped up fists, she tried to take a logical approach to the problem. She distinctly felt the absence of the logical person who typically accompanied her when she was in her mindscape and pouted for a moment before shaking her head vigorously. No, she would have to figure this out on her own.

So, she sat; and stared; and thought. Were there any other variables she had yet to consider? The current issue was that the wall only flickered for about the same amount of time during every attempt. That train of thought caused her to wonder exactly how long the duration was. As there was no way of reckoning time while inside her own mind, she had to make do with counting out loud. Not terribly accurate, but it did the trick. Several more tries revealed she had roughly four or five seconds before the wall regained its static appearance.

"I wonder if anything can even get through when it does that," she wondered aloud to herself.

Kyoko picked up a few small pebbles on the way back from her next trek to her memory archives. Her timing was a bit off and she threw them just a hair too late. However, while the majority of them bounced off the wall right as it returned to its solid state, one of them remained embedded in the wall itself. She wanted to try again but she had been fighting off the steady creep of fatigue that always overwhelmed her whenever she spent long periods of time inside her mind.

Inside the library, she noticed the light coming in from the windows had disappeared and dusk had turned the sky grey mottled with bits of red, orange and purple. She whipped her head around to find the closest clock on a nearby wall and saw she only had a few minutes remaining before she had to meet up with Kanae to return to her apartment. Gathering her books and jacket, she made her way towards the stairs to leave when she overheard the chattering of two voices.

"Ugh, let's just go. No wonder no one else comes up here," said a disdainful female voice. "I didn't know the circus was in town."

Kyoko's face scrunched in confusion. She had just moved out of sight of the two students who stopped at the top of the stairs and were looking around the mostly empty room. They probably spotted her before she moved behind a set of shelves along the wall. If they were going to openly berate her for just being there, she would wait until they went back downstairs to leave. A confrontation was not exactly on the top of her list that evening.

"I mean, really, a Dud and a mindfreak on the same floor?" the woman scoffed. "No, thanks!"

"Shh, he can probably hear you," the man standing next to her hissed in fear.

He? Kyoko thought she was the only one on this floor. She looked across the room from the stacks of shelves were she stood and saw a taller figure hunched over one of the desks in the corner. That back looked oddly familiar despite being clothed in a casual shirt rather than its usual black blazer. For that matter, so did that mess of dark brown hair. Silencing a gasp, she edged closer to the far end of the shelves. When did _he_ get there? And had he seen her?

"I don't care if he can hear me," that woman's voice was really starting to grate on Kyoko. "He can't do anything to me anyway. I'm an innocent, not some criminal deviant."

Kyoko's jaw clenched at those words. This girl honestly thought it was a good idea to make disparaging remarks in the same room as the Academy's strongest Inquisitor? Her bravado bolstered only by the fact that she knew she could get away with it because he is allowed only to use his abilities on the accused. That kind of arrogance never sat well with her and, in the past, she often let it slide as it never seemed worth the effort. But, this time, she was already tired and they were blocking her exit. Her temper flared and, before she realized what she was doing, her feet carried her around the corner of the stacks and she came face to face with the two students.

"But _I_ can year you," she said, crossing her arms in displeasure. "And you shouldn't speak ill of others just because you assume they can't defend themselves."

"So? What could you possibly do to me?" the young woman snorted threateningly, sparks of electricity arcing across her fingers as she spoke. "Everyone knows you don't have an ability yet so… what? You're gonna glare me to death?"

She swore she could hear the faintest whisper of encouragement from somewhere. For some reason, it spurred her on and she felt emboldened, like she had an army backing her up. A cold smile curled onto Kyoko's lips, she adjusted the bag on her shoulder and jutted her chin towards the pair.

"As if I'd need an ability to deal with a nobody like you," she sneered, derision coating every word as they passed from her lips. "Now, I suggest you get out of my way. I have places I need to be."

She shouldered past them and stalked down the stairs as they sputtered nervously with wide eyes. It was a bit confusing as she did not say anything that was particularly threatening or scary. However, once she turned at the sound of heavier footsteps following behind her, she began to connect the dots. The tall Inquisitor caught up with her once she was on the landing of the second floor and she turned to look at him as he hustled to walk beside her. He was holding a book in his left hand, no doubt whatever he was reading before they both left.

"What did you do to them?" she gave him a sideways glance as she continued to walk towards the central staircase.

"I have no idea of what you're talking about," he avoided innocently, his long legs easily keeping up with her hastened pace.

"I wasn't exactly making death threats up there but, somehow, they reacted like I was," she said, rolling her eyes. "And, I could've sworn _someone_ was subliminally egging me on to provoke them. So, what did you do?"

"She thought she had the upper hand because you had no ability," he explained cooly. "I merely introduced the suggestion that she could be very mistaken about that."

"Oh, that's all, huh?" Kyoko asked, doubting that was all he suggested.

"Someone defended my honor," a tiny smirk worked its way onto his face as he spoke. "It would be remiss of me to not return the favor."

Thanks to the brisk pace she maintained, they had both reached the front steps of the library relatively quickly. She turned to look him in the eye.

"I wasn't defending anything," Kyoko said pointedly. "I just wanted her to shut up."

The look on Ren's face disappeared as if it had never been there. His eyes softened as he looked at her clearly irritated face.

"Still, it was appreciated," he said.

"You're welcome, I guess," she mumbled.

"I'm sorry I did not greet you properly when I first spotted you in the library but it looked like you were preoccupied with something else," Ren said with a knowing look, not needing to explain further as they both understood what he meant.

Kyoko only shrugged and looked away.

"I also apologize for canceling our appointment today," he said, remorse clearly evident in his voice. "I was given a mandatory vacation by my supervisor as he believed I was working too hard."

It was definitely a lie, but not altogether untrue. He hoped he managed to say it smoothly enough.

"Oh," she faltered. "That was very nice of them."

"It would have been nicer if it wasn't on a day when we were supposed to meet," he said with a light smile before he quickly cleared his throat. That sounded almost flirtatious and he had no idea where that came from.

"I thought you were avoiding me because I had done or said something to make you angry," Kyoko said with a rueful laugh. "Awfully conceited of me, right? Especially when you're taking time out of your busy schedule."

"Not at all. If my behavior suggested otherwise, I apologize for that too" he assured her. "I hope it was not too much of an inconvenience."

"Well, they moved up my first psychological evaluation since the time slot became available so…" she trailed off.

Ren winced and shook his head, "My condolences."

Kyoko laughed at that; a bit too loudly at first so she clamped a hand over her mouth while her shoulders continued to shake.

"It's fine," she assured him. "I managed to keep it short and still pass with flying colors."

"You'll have to let me in on your secret some time," he said, raising an eyebrow at her.

"I'll think about it," she said with a crooked smile.

"Perhaps I can persuade you by escorting you wherever you are headed?"

She agreed and they spent the short walk to the nearby building talking about what she managed to discover during her time in the library. He listened intently and praised her for attempting to break down the problem to try understanding it better. They decided they would speak more about it at their next appointment. Approaching the building, they spotted another young woman waiting impatiently by the door. Kyoko immediately ran over to her and apologized profusely for being late. With her escort seemingly placated for the moment, she turned back to him with a hopeful look.

"I'll see you next week?" she asked.

"Barring any more unexpected time off, yes," he said, then looked down at the book he held in his hand. "And if I fail to return this book to the library, I may inadvertently end up with another one."

"I'm holding you to it," she with a smile and laughter in her eyes.

She turned back to the woman beside her who nodded respectfully to him before they walked off into the rapidly approaching night.

* * *

 **THIS CHAPTER BROUGHT TO YOU BY LATE NIGHTS, JUNK FOOD AND ADULT BEVERAGES: I had the hardest time finishing this one. Apologies for being over a week late, but life and work got in the way. To make up for it, this chapter is probably the longest I've ever written thus far. I didn't proofread/edit as much as I prefer to but I will come back later and update it with any necessary fixes.**

 **The remainder of winter and most of spring are looking to be ridiculously hectic for me, but I'll try to be as regular as I can with updates. Sorry in advance for any large breaks between chapters. You have all been amazing and supportive and it makes me so happy to see how interested you are in the story that I can't give up on you now! So, updates may be slower going forward, but they're still going to happen. Count on it!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	9. Falling

**CHAPTER 8: FALLING**

The following week was filled with a myriad of experiments within Kyoko's mind. Once they were back to their normal schedule, Kyoko was happy to have a set of helping hands where her own could not quite reach. As such, they went through a series of trials and gathered what data they could on the flickering wall phenomenon.

On the first day, she was finally able to get an accurately measured time span on how long the wall would disappear after she applied the memories to the door. Ren sat in their usual meeting room and consulted the clock on the wall while she spoke out loud to him about when the wall phased out and back in. They did it several times and got an average of about three-and-a-half seconds with a delay of one second after the application of the memories.

With one more detail nailed down, they moved on to attempting to pass objects through the wall when it disappeared. They were both surprised and elated to find that it was, in fact, possible. Starting with just a few stones, like Kyoko had the week before, they managed to get the timing right to throw them through the wall. They progressively tried to move larger objects through—though the juggling clown in her mind was somewhat perturbed at having to sacrifice one of his clubs—and found success with each one. By the time Kyoko resorted to pitching her own shoes through the wall, Ren had to stop and ask why she was testing this particular aspect so thoroughly.

"Because," she said, shifting uneasily from one foot to the other. "I couldn't find anything in the library that said whether or not it was possible for someone to get stuck in their own mind… or someone else's."

He made a sound of acknowledgement and nodded slowly. It suddenly made sense why she would constantly frown while they were running their experiments. She was battling with assessing the risk of who would be best to go through. And she was stalling for time so that she could postpone that decision for as long as possible. Ren was fairly certain what her decision should be, but he was not necessarily enthused about it.

"The answer to your problem is fairly obvious, is it not?" he asked cautiously.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and nodded once, "I should be the one to go, shouldn't I?"

To Kyoko, she knew that the possibility of her getting somehow stuck in her own mind was less of an issue for all involved; her abilities never fully manifested and she would not be incapacitating the strongest telepath in the Academy. However, Ren considered that she was the better candidate as that still gave him the chance to try to help free her should anything go wrong. They both came to the right conclusion, albeit by very different paths.

"You know what this means, don't you?" she asked.

The look on his face said otherwise as he stood there.

"You'll have to push me through," she explained. "So that I clear the wall before it phases back in and traps me in it."

"Ah," he said at last, looking somewhat bewildered. "Then pressure is on us both."

Kyoko let out a small giggle and smiled up at the man before picking up one of the cupped leaves full of liquid from her memory archives that they prepared in advance. She held it out to him with a look that encouraged him to take it from her. He plucked it gingerly from her hands, watching the tiny, opalescent puddle contained within as it swirled and morphed and rested it in his palm. Standing alongside the door, she waited nervously for him to pour out the liquid.

Once the liquid was gone, Ren immediately side-stepped to stand in front of Kyoko and placed his hands on her shoulders. It was a comforting thought, at least, that her corporeal self would not be physically hurt by being pushed. Nonetheless, it felt horribly impolite. At the first sign of the wall beginning to flicker, his hands clenched and he leaned forward with a half step to push her as hard as he could through the wall.

In hindsight, they probably should have cleared the small pile of stones they had gathered near the wall from their earlier experiments. Unfortunately, neither of them had the forethought to consider that it would be a problem later on. But, a problem it suddenly became as Ren's shuffling feet caught on the rocks and he stumbled forward. His weight and the force of his push sent him falling through the wall with Kyoko before him. He tried to use his other foot to push forward so that he would also clear the wall and instinctively wrapped his arms around her small frame while bracing for impact as they plummeted towards the ground on the other side.

Were it not for the soft grass on the ground, they would have landed in a cloud of dust. Both of them let out an audible grunt when they crashed. Kyoko was thankful to only be a mental projection of herself as there was no pain or discomfort from the whole ordeal, but it was jarring to say the least. She did, however, feel the weight of the Inquisitor who was currently on top of her and still had his arms around her waist. Recognizing that he was probably both upset and embarrassed by this event, she remained still and silent so that he had a few moments to collect himself.

To merely say that Ren was upset or embarrassed was grievous understatement. There was a veritable plethora of emotions running through him and they were changing by the second. He was angry at himself for not noticing the stones in his way, worried that he had somehow hurt Kyoko in the process, concerned that they were both stuck in this place together with no way out and afraid to look behind him in the event that his long legs had not made it through the wall. Underneath all of that confusion was the oddest sense of exhilaration at the feeling of holding this young woman.

That sent him reeling with a whole new flurry of emotions; disgust, shame, remorse. He had his fill of meaningless encounters with women over the years spanning his mid to late teens. As a listless teenager with little motivation, distractions often took various forms and he indulged in as many as he could to keep his depression at bay. However, that lifestyle was not conducive to his current identity and he did not want it to be. That part of his life was long past. Still, this was wholly different; where those times served to muffle the overactive thoughts in his mind, this occasion was causing the exact opposite.

Noticing that he still had not moved or said anything, Kyoko became concerned. Had something happened to him when they passed through the wall? She shifted slightly beneath him to relieve the pressure where the sharp angles of his body dug into hers.

"Hey, Ren, are you okay?"

His body tensed at the sound of her calling his name. With an affirmative groan, he braced one forearm on the ground and lifted his head from where it laid against her shoulder, making sure to pull back far enough from her face to avoid the awkwardness of being too close. He was still close enough to notice her eyes darting back and forth as she tried to decide which eye to focus on before splitting the difference and stopping on his nose.

"I am fine, thank you," he said

"Uh, are you able to get up?" she asked as politely as possible without betraying her unease at still being trapped beneath him.

"I… actually have been a bit hesitant to confirm whether or not my legs made it through the wall," he admitted sheepishly.

"Afraid you got stuck, huh?" an impish smile flashed across Kyoko's face. "Well, that would compound our problem since you're not even supposed to be on this side of the wall anyway."

Before he could respond, she craned her neck and lifted her upper body as much as she could. Her bangs fluttered past his cheek as she slid her face beside his to look over his shoulder. For only being a projection, it felt soft as it whisked past. The sensation sent a jolt through is body and the arm he still had around her waist tightened its grasp slightly. The movement did not go unnoticed and Kyoko turned her head slightly.

"There's no need to panic," she said softly, as her mouth was right by his ear. "Both of your legs are fine."

"Ah, so they are," Ren said, turning his head away from hers to look over his other shoulder. He was thankful his sudden reaction did not startle her as he wondered why he even did it in the first place.

He pushed up until he could get his feet under him and stand. Once he was up, he bent over with an outstretched hand towards Kyoko. They both took a moment to look around before they moved any further. The whole area appeared to be nothing more than a continuation of the forest from which they came. However, the young woman beside him seemed to be looking at everything with a bit more interest.

"Well, if we're both going to be stuck in here, we might as well take a look around," she said before wandering off in one direction.

Ren followed her silently as she walked, maintaining a slower pace to stay just behind her. The forest seemed reminiscent of the time he spent in Keypointe as a child. He remembered how much he loved to wander among the gnarled trees that grew wild along the hillside, each one stretching eagerly towards the sun to get the light while covering the ground below in mottled shade. There was a peacefulness to this scenery that saddened him to realize he had completely forgotten about it.

"It reminds me of the woods by my house back home," she added softly while picking her way through the undergrowth. "I suppose it would. This _is_ my mind, after all."

Winding their way through a particularly dense thicket of trees, they came upon a small clearing. To be more accurate, they literally stumbled upon it as Kyoko tripped and narrowly avoided falling head-first into a large divot in the ground. Regaining her footing, she skirted around the edge of it. Ren went around it in the other direction to give her as much room as she needed to maneuver. They met on the other end beside a small shrub that came up to their knees.

"Is this a secondary memory archive?" she asked aloud, echoing the same question Ren was currently pondering in his head.

"It certainly looks like one," he said with a nod. "Or, at least, it used to be. I assume that was a pond like the one on the other side of the wall."

He pointed towards the dent in the ground where Kyoko previously tripped and she looked at it with a frown.

"Why is it all dried up? I thought there were supposed to be other memories here," she said with clear disappointment. "Even this plant is empty."

"Not entirely," Ren interjected. "Take a look on this side."

Walking over to where he stood, she stopped beside him and craned her neck to see where he was looking. Her eyes widened in surprise as she bent down to look closer at the single flower that bloomed on the shrub. If plants inside her mindscape followed the same biological rules as those in reality, there would be no doubt as to why this was the only flower as its size alone would mean that it required all of the nutrients this small plant could get via photosynthesis.

If all other roses were simply the common folk of their kingdom, then this rose would be their monarch. This was the largest rose Kyoko had ever seen. Granted, it was an imaginary rose in her own mind, but it was still impressively realistic despite its unbelievable size. It was easily the same width as her hand and rows upon rows of crimson petals flared out from the center creating a very full and velvety blossom. She reached out slowly with tentative fingers to touch it and drew back her hand with a frown.

"It's dry," she said in disappointment. "Not like we could've used it here anyway."

When she looked over at the indentation of dry, cracked earth, something caught the light just right that she could now see from her position near the ground. Kyoko crawled towards it on her hands and knees, afraid that if she lost her vantage point, she would be unable to spot the object. Once she reached the spot where it lay, she brushed a thin layer of dirt away to reveal a small, brass key. She could see the finish on the metal had an iridescent quality, causing it to change to various shades of blue in the light. However, when she tried to remove it from the dirt, her hand passed right through it.

"Why can't I pick it up?" she asked, dismayed.

Ren walked to where she was bent over the ground to look at the key, "It wouldn't be the first occurrence of being unable to control something in your mind."

"Don't remind me," she grumbled.

He kneeled down beside her and reached towards the key out of curiosity. To his surprise, the key lifted easily out of the dirt. Kyoko knitted her brow and tried again to touch the key now that he held it and growled in frustration when her fingers, again, failed to grasp it.

"Okay, that's just super unfair," she pouted.

"This has been quite the elaborate arrangement to keep you away from your memories," Ren mused, looking at the key he held. "I suppose my being here ended up being a good thing after all."

"Apparently," Kyoko groused, still irritated. "Do you think that'll open up the door to the wall?"

"Only one way to find out," he replied, standing up before he offered her a hand.

It was fairly easy to retrace their steps back to where they entered to find the door. With the key now in hand, they were eager to test it and see if they now had a way to freely move between both sides of the wall. Unfortunately, when they reached it, they were unsure as to how to proceed. There was no visible lock where a key could be inserted.

"Maybe we should just poke the door with it and see if a lock shows up," Kyoko suggested.

Ren's eyebrow arced questioningly at her.

"What?" she defended. "Not a whole lot makes much sense around here as it is. Unless you have a better idea."

He shrugged and pointed the narrow end of the key towards the door and moved it closer. As it approached the door, the once flat surface began to undulate like ripples on water until the relief of a keyhole began to take shape. Once the key was mere millimeters away, the shape solidified and Kyoko let a gasp escape her lips. With the key now firmly in the door, Ren twisted it to the right by ninety degrees and they heard the telltale clunk of a deadbolt sliding out of a door jamb. Pulling the key from the lock, he gave the door a light push and watched it slowly swing open.

"We're free!" Kyoko cheered ecstatically from behind him.

"It would appear so," he agreed and stepped forward to walk through the door.

He felt a tug on his jacket and turned to see the young woman looking at him plaintively.

"Wait, just a second," she said with a finger raised. "I'll be right back."

Ren watched her dash off into the trees at a full sprint. She returned moments later with the giant rose they found earlier in her hand and skipped through the door ahead of him. He dropped the key he still held into the pocket inside his jacket, out of pure habit, and walked through as well. The door automatically shut behind them with a loud bang.

"I figured we should take it with us just in case it works over on this side," she called over her shoulder.

He followed again with her leading the way until they reached her memory archive outside the wall. Kyoko knelt by the edge of the pond with the rose clutched firmly in one hand. Her face scrunched in concentration as she held the flower over the water's surface and tilted it until the bloom was fully inverted. She let out the breath she held in a forceful puff when nothing happened. Not a single drop came out. A frustrated groan followed and she began to vigorously shake the rose. On the verge of giving up, she shook it one last time and watched as something finally made its way out of the flower and into the pond.

However, what appeared was not liquid. Ren moved to crouched down beside her to see what fell into the water as well. Once the ripples subsided, they both saw a pink, crystallized teardrop resting at the bottom. Without a second thought, Kyoko's hand dove into the water to pick it up. Her hand resurfaced with the item resting in her opened palm so they could both get a good look at it. It was faceted like a precious gem stone that had been cut and polished and she marveled at the way it sparkled as it caught the light.

The shimmering suddenly brightened in intensity and the teardrop dissipated in a burst of bright light.

"What—," Kyoko began to say before ending her sentence with an annoyed sigh instead. "Every time we get closer to figuring this whole thing out, there's always _one_ more thing that gets in our way!"

Ren remained silent. He was unsure as to what he could say or do at the moment that would be of any consolation to her. Instead he just watched her weave her hands through her hair to clutch angrily at her own head. She made a few more irritated grunts before dropping her hands into her lap.

"Well, at least those flowers always grow back," she said finally, sounding tired and defeated.

"They do?"

"Sure, you never noticed? Each time you pick one, a new one pops into it's place right afterwards. The same thing happened with this one," she held up the rose that dropped into the water during her brief tantrum.

"Ah," he said. Now that he thought about it, she was right. He remembered seeing that happen when he helped her collect memories for their tests on the wall.

"At least we still have the key, right?" she asked, as if trying desperately to find a silver lining.

Ren patted worriedly at his jacket for a moment before nodding.

"I guess you can hold on to it," she said with a shrug. "Will it still be in there the next time you come back?

"Quite honestly, I don't know," he admitted. "Should I leave it somewhere else just in case this does not reappear like your flowers?"

"Well, it won't do me any good here since I can't even touch it, much less use it," she said sadly. "Plus, we can't do anything with what we've found inside the wall anyway."

The chiming of the clock in the room where their real bodies were seated echoed against the walls and signaled the end of their appointment.

"I guess it's time for us to go," Kyoko sighed dejectedly.

Ren frowned, then placed his hand lightly on her shoulder.

"I know this has continued to be frustrating for you but, thanks to your quick thinking, we've made a lot of progress," he said gently. "For someone who has tackled this problem while learning as you go along, you're doing remarkably well. Don't let yourself get too discouraged, alright?"

Kyoko looked at his hand and was surprised to feel the warmth radiating from it but, somehow, it was calming to her. When she finally looked up at his face, there was a smile she had never seen him make before. It was as warm as his hand and she found herself smiling back despite her earlier mood. The warmth seemed to spread to her cheeks and she felt herself flushing. It caused her to panic for a moment and she quickly looked away from him before standing up. He pulled back his hand and also stood.

"Thanks," she said, not quite able to look him in the eye; easy enough to do as he was quite a bit taller than her. "I'll try my best not to."

"Good," she heard him reply, there was still a tenderness in his voice. "Then, let's get going, shall we?"

* * *

 **HEY, GUESS WHO USED AN OUTLINE THIS TIME (it was me): After finishing up the last chapter, I actually had a burst of ideas for the next couple chapters and set aside some time to write down the important parts for each one. As such, I totally have outlines now instead of writing by the seat of my pants with only a scant few notes on the general direction of the story. Hopefully, this means I can keep writing chapters on schedule, but I'm not making any solid promises. Springtime will have me traveling a bit for work and for weddings so I know that will already put a damper on things, but I'm going to use the time I have now to keep the story going!**

 **Thanks to everyone for the reviews and comments. It really means so very much to me that you continue to give me feedback. It's like the lifeline that keeps me going until the next chapter is written. So, keep it coming, everyone and I'll see you next time!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	10. Burdens

**CHAPTER 9: BURDENS**

Kanae Kotonami was used to Kyoko's antics by this point in time. Having witnessed times when the young woman was nearly manic with excitement as well as when she was more subdued and thoughtful, it was getting easier to understand her. Thus, when she was not at their usual meeting spot at the end of her classes for the day, the young empath looked to the trees. Sure enough, she found her sitting quietly on a branch, her belongings nestled together at the base of the trunk.

Rather than calling up to her, Kanae made the decision to join her. It was a rather low-hanging branch so it would be fairly easy to access. After a few moments of deciding what the best route would be, she sat beside Kyoko who looked at her with barely concealed surprise.

"So, what brings you up here this time?" she asked, ignoring the other woman's reaction. "Boy troubles again?"

"No," Kyoko snorted and rolled her eyes at the question. "But, what possessed you to come up here with me?"

"I wanted to see what it was like," she replied. "Besides, I had a stressful day too, you know. The person I was supposed to accompany forgot to meet me at our agreed time."

"Oh, Kanae, I'm so sorry I keep doing this to you," Kyoko apologized, slumping forward in shame.

Kanae pushed on her forehead with one hand to get her to sit up properly once more. "If you're having troubles, you know you can try talking to me about it. I may not be able to understand it but I can at least understand how you feel."

"Thanks," she said with a grateful smile. "It's really not one thing in particular. I just feel lost and frustrated about a lot of things. Everything seems to be taking longer than I hoped and, every time I feel like I'm making any headway, something else comes along to cause a delay. I just wanted to get my feelings in order because I won't be able to get anything done if I'm just wallowing."

The young empath blinked. Never had she met someone so obstinately practical about their own feelings. There was clearly a turbulence of emotions running through the young woman, but she seemed to be steadily compartmentalizing them and putting them away.

"Kyoko, there's no waste in taking time to acknowledge your emotions," she said gently. "Sometimes you need to let them run their course for a little bit so that they don't gang up later and overwhelm you."

"I'm more of a suck-it-up-and-move-forward kind of girl, but I'll keep that in mind," Kyoko said with a shrug, then smiled. "But talking to you has made me feel a little better. Thank you."

"Are you sure that's all you needed?" the empath asked.

"For now, at least," Kyoko nodded. "Do you need help getting down from here?"

"I'm sure I can figure it out on my own," Kanae scoffed.

"If you say so!" Kyoko chirped before pushing herself off the branch and landing perfectly on both feet.

Kanae took her time shimmying back down the way she came up and both women helped the other pick up their belongings before walking towards Kyoko's apartment building.

* * *

They were elated to learn that the key found during their last appointment was still safely tucked in Ren's jacket when they next met. It was the first thing he checked when he entered her mind and breathed a quiet sigh of relief when his fingers closed around the small, metallic object in his pocket. He showed it to Kyoko and she cheered happily.

"It's been driving me crazy that I can't look around on my own in there," she complained. "I'm so glad we can still use it!"

"As am I," Ren agreed. "I was counting on the fact that, since the object was created in your mind, it would still exist when we came back because it belongs here."

"A risky bet for sure," Kyoko nodded. "Anyway, let's go quickly so we can make the most of the time we have!"

She all but dragged him towards the wall, pulling him along by the hand as she rushed ahead. He stumbled behind her, nearly tripping over his own long legs. They spent the first quarter of their hour together wandering through the trees beyond the wall. Kyoko had said the forest reminded her of the woods near her house, but she soon realized that it _was_ the very same forest when they came upon a ranch style house painted slate blue with large windows along the sides and a burnt orange door.

"It's a replica of my house," she said, running up to the front door to see if it was unlocked.

Opening the door to step inside, Kyoko stood just in the entry way and gasped at what she saw inside. Everything was a perfect reproduction of what she remembered from her home as a child, down to her tiny blue raincoat that hung on the rack by the door. She slowly wandered from room to room, gently touching objects on the walls and tables as if they would disappear before her eyes if she applied any more force.

The bright red teakettle she had broken when she was nine stood whole and unmarred on the countertop in the kitchen. The faded bedspread with tiny blue flowers was folded primly at the foot of her small bed and missing the splatter of ink from the broken pen she pulled from her book bag around the age of eleven. A green toothbrush, sitting in the pink plastic cup by the bathroom sink, looked much smaller than the ones she had been using in recent years but she remembered it being one of her favorites due to the color, though she could not recall why. Everything in this house appeared to be completely frozen in time as light streamed in through the windows, highlighting fluttering, floating dust motes and giving the entire scene a dream-like quality.

She looked back at Ren, who followed her silently throughout the house.

"It's an _exact_ replica of my house from around the time I was six," she said, finally.

"That would make sense," he said with a nod. "Isn't that the approximate age range where your memories are missing?"

"Yes," she said, chewing at her bottom lip. "I just didn't expect it to be so perfectly reproduced."

"Many people don't realize how ingrained the memories of their homes can be," he explained, his eyes flitting over the drawings taped to the wall of her room. "But, they are often the most easily to recall because of the familiarity with seeing the same thing every day. It's somewhat like being able to walk safely through your house in the dark without running into anything because of your intimate knowledge of where everything should be."

Kyoko hummed and sat unceremoniously on her bed with a soft thump. Sighing, she let her body go limp and keeled over to one side. The tiny bed was just as soft as he remembered it and the well-worn sheets surprisingly smelled of the detergent her mother always used. She lay like this for a bit, staring unseeingly at the small desk along the wall across from her. Ren watched her wordlessly, not sure if saying anything would benefit the situation, and saw her eyes open wide as she focused on something in front of her.

Sliding off the bed and onto her knees, she crawled over to the desk. She pushed the wooden chair aside and scooted underneath to get a closer look at what caught her eye from across the room. At first glance, it appeared to just be an imperfection in the floral print on her walls. However, now that she took a closer look, there was a perfectly hidden drawing, done in crayon, directly on the wall itself. Easily missable by adult eyes as she only lucked into finding it by being at a similar height as her much younger self.

It was not the best drawing by any stretch of the imagination and clearly made by a child's hand. Two stick figures stood beside what looked to be a stream—as evidenced by the squiggle of blue— surrounded by scraggly trees. Kyoko traced her finger over the smiles of the two figures holding hands and hummed thoughtfully. Noticing she spent an unusual length of time crouched under the desk, Ren bent over to see what she was doing.

"Have you found something interesting?" he asked.

"It looks like I drew a picture on the wall under here," she replied.

He lowered himself to his knees to get a better look at what she was talking about. It was a cramped space and she took up the majority of the room beneath the small child-sized desk as it was. Still, he managed to poke his head over her shoulder. Kyoko did not realize she was holding her breath as his face passed so closely to hers until she nearly suffocated herself. Something about the way his hair brushed against her cheek sent a tingling dancing across her face and she froze momentarily at the sensation before taking a deep breath.

"See these two people?" she said, pointing to one the stick figures, the shorter of the two with what appeared to be two dark pigtails sticking out from the sides of the face. "I'm pretty sure that's me but, I have no idea who the other person is."

The taller figure had short hair colored in spiky zig-zags around its face with bright yellow crayon and Kyoko was clueless as to who they could be. She tapped her fingers against the wall as she stared at the drawing thoughtfully.

"And this is definitely your drawing?" Ren asked.

"I know it's hard to believe that my artistic abilities were so advanced at such a young age," Kyoko said jokingly. "But yes, this looks like one of mine. Though, I don't quite recall when I did this."

"Maybe they were an imaginary friend?" he joked in return before she shot him an irritated look over her shoulder. "What? It's not unheard of for younger children to have one."

"I may not have had a lot of friends growing up," she said sharply. "But, I'm pretty sure none of them were imaginary."

"Of course, I apologize," he corrected, clearing his throat. "They appear to be a bit taller; perhaps they were an older relative? Maybe your father?"

Ren, apparently, seemed to have shoved his foot further in his mouth as Kyoko's face darkened. He immediately pulled back from his place over her shoulder and sat on his heels. She stayed under the desk and he watched as she shook her head silently back and forth.

"No, that's absolutely not him," she said, her voice sounding tiny, muffled and trapped beneath the desk. "There were times when I actually wished I _could_ forget him, but I still remember what he looks like."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know—" he began, but stopped when he saw her lift her hand.

"No, you didn't," she said calmly, pulling herself out from where she sat to look at him. "And it would be foolish of me to expect you to. There's no reason for me to be upset with you for something you didn't know about. You did nothing wrong."

"You don't have to tell me anything about it," he nodded solemnly. "Especially if it makes you this upset. But, if you think it might help, I'm willing to listen."

The duo ended up leaving the house and found themselves sitting on the deck behind it facing the expanse of forest. They knew their time was almost up so they opted to spend the remaining minutes idling rather than trying to rush any sort of speculation over the meaning of a child's hidden crayon fresco. It would still be there when they came back so there was no harm in leaving it for now. More importantly, Ren recognized that Kyoko needed some time to collect herself. As someone who usually is so pragmatic and effervescent, it was very noticeable when her mood changed for the worse.

Kyoko's legs swung lazily back and forth over the edge while her hand lay flat against the wood, bracing her on either side. It felt oddly nostalgic considering it was only a mental copy of the real thing and was lacking a gentle breeze and the pulse of chirping cicadas. She looked over at Ren, who sat beside her with one leg up, the ankle resting atop the knee of the other leg that was planted firmly on the ground. His hands were resting gently in his lap and he looked down at them as if he were looking through them.

"He left us several months after my fourth birthday," she began. "The last words he said to me were 'goodbye' and 'I'm sorry.' He never treated us badly and he seemed to be enamored with my mom so it made no sense to me even then. After that, my mother refused to talk about him, so I still have no idea why he left. I don't know if you noticed, but there were no photos of him in the house."

"I had wondered about that," he admitted.

"It's like she wanted to erase all traces of him from our lives like was never there in the first place," she explained, her voice sounding suddenly hoarse and scratchy. "When I was younger, I wondered if forgetting all about him would relieve me of the burden of his memory. It seemed to be what my mother was trying to do, at least, and I figured that I couldn't be sad if I didn't remember what to be sad about."

"It must have been difficult for you," he said quietly.

He reached out a hand to rest lightly on hers; a move he instantly regretted as soon as he did it as he felt his stomach bottom out from the contact. Unfortunately, he could not pull away and risk her interpreting it negatively as being her fault. Instead, he let it rest there and did his best to focus more on their conversation and less on his hand. And her hand. Their hands.

"Well, as you can tell, it didn't work," she said with a resigned sigh. "Not entirely, anyway. I'd forget for periods of time but something would eventually end up reminding me of him. Go figure, I can't forget the one thing I actually wanted to but, somehow, someone has sealed me off from a different chunk of my childhood memories."

"I'm sorry this whole thing has been so unpleasant," Ren apologized.

"Don't be," she assured him. "It's not as if any of this is your fault. Besides, I've been able to meet new people and learn new things because of this as well."

"Not everyone could find the positives in a situation like this," he said with a grim smile. "It's commendable that you are able to do so."

She closed her eyes and let out a small laugh at that, leaning towards his arm where it stretched out to keep his hand on hers until her shoulder butted into it. "Well, if you haven't figured it out yet, what I lack in knowledge and understanding I more than make up for in enthusiasm and stubbornness."

His smile brightened and carried up into his eyes as he stared out into the trees. "You certainly do at that."

* * *

The following day was the Central Academy's quarterly Assembly meeting and Ren was, yet again, loathing that he was required to be present for the proceedings. Technically, he was not even a member of the Assembly. Nonetheless, his adept skill and ability level put him high enough on the list of potential candidates that he now had to attend these meetings as a sort of initiation. He had only been going to these for a little over a year but, from as early as his first, he knew he would rather be anywhere else.

For the time being, he was able to avoid induction into the Assembly by simply being too young. At the age of twenty-one, the other candidates and everyone else on the Assembly had anywhere from ten to forty years on him. Every meeting he attended had him silently dreading the news of any of the elder members' impending retirement. Once a space opened up, he moved ever closer to being the next in line to fill it. That was his projected career path, determined for him from the moment he came under the employ of the Academy. For someone as powerful as him, that was his _raison d'être_ ; regardless of whether he agreed with it or not.

According to his boss, it was actually the safest position to be in. A position with that much status afforded him more benefits than a regular employee. Politics have always been the ideal place for someone harboring a number of dangerous secrets. He hated this fact and, by that same token, hated himself a little. It was a secret he was forced to keep for his own safety, but not a day went by that he did not wish to just blurt it out, consequences be damned, just to relieve himself of the burden.

But, he knew what would happen if he did. Being already under close watch due to his position and ability level, he was well aware of how that would increase in aggressiveness. He would be no better than Kyoko, in her pleasantly unpleasant prison of constant evaluations and doctor visits. Perhaps that was also why he felt compelled to help her. Saving someone else from the fate he would inevitably be resigned to should he ever make his secret known seemed a paltry absolution, but it would have to do.

He wondered what his father would say if he could see him now. Knowing him, he would probably smack him in the forehead and tell him to quit with the theatrics. Were he not currently in a room full of mostly strangers, he probably would do it to himself. He really was being overdramatic.

The droning voices of the other people in the room made him feel drowsy. Ren had long ago stopped paying attention to what was being said. He gathered the gist of what they were discussing, but had little interest in following it too closely. Instead, knowing this was going to take some time, he retreated into sanctuary of his own mind. He was practiced enough to do it with his eyes open, allowing him to still appear alert and attentive. One of the other side benefits of his reputation was that no one tried to talk to him during the proceedings so he had little fear of getting caught.

He found his younger self sitting on a bench in the courtyard behind his memory archive, surrounded by trees with perfectly manicured branches and neatly cut grass. The young man was petting a small brown rabbit in his lap while a tabby cat sat curled up near his feet and several birds perched around his shoulders.

"What brings you by this time?" the boy asked.

"Assembly meeting," he replied plainly.

"No wonder," he hummed. "Well, you picked a good day to come. The weather is pretty nice today."

Ren raised an unamused eyebrow at the boy.

"You know very well it can rain in here depending on your mental state, don't give me that look," the teenager admonished.

"So, who do you have from your menagerie today?" Ren asked, smoothly changing the subject.

"Well, we've got Heckle, Jeckle and Fred," he answered, pointing to the birds. "This is Sir Reginald Von Hoppington the Third and Chairman Meow's down by my feet."

"I can see you've had plenty of time to come up with strange names."

"Says the guy talking to himself in his own mind because he's bored," the boy mutters, shaking his head. "You're gonna be here for a while so come on and have a seat. I'm sure Chairman will let you pet him."

He removed his jacket before sitting, a move he realized was more reflexive than necessary. Any animal hair he got on himself in his mind would not manifest on his actual clothing. Since it was already off, he left it that way and turned to sit on the bench folding the jacket neatly over the armrest to his right. Sir Reginald Von Hoppington the Third was, apparently, not pleased with the newest addition to the gathering at the bench and promptly escaped, scrambling over Ren's lap and pushing his jacket aside as it dashed under the armrest to freedom. The clink of metal hitting stone caused both men to look towards the source of the noise and they bent over to look on the pavement below the bench.

There, on the ground, having fallen out of his jacket pocket, was a small, brass key.

* * *

 **THIS CHAPTER BROUGHT TO YOU BY RAINY DAYS, FUDGE STRIPED COOKIES AND MY SPOTIFY PLAYLIST (also known as the Dream Team Creativity Trifecta): The next update after this should be on time, but the one following it may be a week late as I have to travel (ugh, again) for work. However, if I get it done early, maybe I'll update it before I have to leave... maybe. No promises on that, unfortunately!**

 **Thanks to everyone who wrote a review for the last chapter. You, and all of the readers who see this, are my reason for doing this so it's nice to have the encouragement to keep going. Keep being amazing and I'll see you all again in two weeks!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	11. Conflict

**CHAPTER 10: CONFLICT**

She spotted him walking through the halls with a number of people she did not recognize. As luck would have it, he was straggling behind them when he neared the room she was in. Better still, the rest of the hall was relatively empty as she could hear only the hollow echo of a few footsteps. With a swift but firm hand, she yanked him by the arm inside the room and closed the door behind them. He tumbled into the room and braced himself on a nearby table.

"What the… Kyoko?!" Sho asked in surprise.

"I need to talk to you and, since you don't want to be seen around me, I'm abiding by your ridiculous requirement," she replied flatly, then gave him a wry smile. "Also, I owed you for last time, Sho. Turnabout is fair play, after all."

"You didn't have to be so rough about it," he grumbled, then sighed. "Anyway, what do you need?"

"Since you're the only person who's known me since childhood," she explained quickly. "I need to know if you happen to remember any of the other kids I was friends with when i was younger."

"Why the weird question all of a sudden?" he asked, raising a curious eyebrow at her.

"There's not a whole lot of time before your friends realize you didn't just disappear into the bathroom, Sho," Kyoko urged. "They'll come looking for you and find you with me and you don't want that, do you? Now, come on, out with it."

"Fine," he said with a groan. "Could you be a little more specific at least? Like, what age range?"

"Around the age of six I suppose," she explained with a shrug.

"You… can't remember any of the friends you had when you were six?" he asked warily.

"I _can_ remember, I just need to know if I forgot anyone."

"Well, I only remember Lira and Sam from around that time," he said, squinting as he tried to recall.

Kyoko nodded with a frown. She remembered Lira well. Particularly after the girl suddenly stopped talking to her once Sho hit puberty and started bleaching his naturally mousy brown hair. She started talking to him instead. An important lesson was learned about the fickleness of some friendships at that time and, from that point onward, she tended to shy away from befriending other females when Sho was around. Sam, on the other hand, was a nice kid, but she mostly only hung out with him by proxy because she tagged along with Sho. She never saw him aside from the times he and Sho would visit each others' houses.

"Uh," he hesitated for a moment. "Maybe Mika from school?"

"She was in my class for a few years, but we never really talked."

"Hm, well, I can't think of anyone else," he finished with a shrug.

"No one else?" she asked in disbelief. "I wasn't friends with anyone with blond hair?"

"Well, there's yours truly, of course," Sho replied with a smirk and a laugh.

"I didn't mean you," she scowled. "Besides, your hair wasn't blond then."

"I really don't remember any others," he admitted, scrubbing a hand back and forth through his hair. "If there was anyone else, I probably never met them."

"But we always hung out together," she said, almost desperately. "If you never met them, then they weren't my friend."

"We didn't _always_ hang out, you know," he reminded her. "That was same the year I went on vacation with my parents in the summer, remember?"

Of course she remembered that summer. How could she forget it? It was the infamous summer when the Keypointe Incident happened. That was unfortunate, she realized with a frown, as the largest chunk of her forgotten memories were from around that time. She began to feel disheartened.

"Yea…" she trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

"Well, we kinda got back right after, you know, everything already happened and the aftermath was a little chaotic," Sho said uneasily.

Her body went slack and she sighed in defeat. Another dead end. Great, just great. She laced her hands together over and over, as if it would somehow help gather her thoughts in a more orderly fashion.

"So, what's the deal with all these weird questions?" Sho spoke up after watching her for a bit. "You're not in some kind of trouble or something, are you?"

"No, no," she assured him quickly. "I'm just trying to get some outside help with the missing pieces of my memories."

"Aren't you already getting outside help from that guy?" Sho asked, making a strange face.

"Yea, but he doesn't know me," she explained. "He can't exactly fill the gaps in my memory when he wasn't even there and doesn't know what happened."

"You know, there's someone else who could help you," Sho said hesitantly. "If you need someone who's known you since you were little…"

"Sho…" she began in a warning tone.

"I know, I know," he held his hands up in defense of himself. "But, you know she works here in the city now. Maybe you could take some time to see her. If anything, it'll get you off campus for a bit."

"I don't know if I even want to see her," Kyoko admitted finally, crossing her arms tightly.

"Well no one's forcing you to," he said. "But, she probably already knows about you being here."

"Ugh, you're right," she said with a groan. "Maybe I should at least have a short talk with her."

"It couldn't hurt."

"Understatement of the year, Sho," she grumbled, then gave him a tiny smile. "Anyway, you should get going before you're missed."

"Uh, yeah," he said, as if suddenly realizing how long he had been there with her. "I'll see you around, okay?"

"Sure," she said with a nod. "And thanks."

Returning the nod, he gave her a slight wave before disappearing out the door. Kyoko collapsed against one of the desks and exhaled loudly, hunching her shoulders as she curled inward on herself. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in through her nose before slowly releasing it through her mouth. Shaking her head gently a few times, she cleared away the upsetting thoughts from her head before they had a chance to take root. Once again on an even keel, she opened her eyes, gathered her belongings and walked out of the classroom.

* * *

Ren stared, muted by shock, at the key for a very long moment. What was that doing here? This was highly improbable. Impossible, even.

"That shouldn't be here," he said.

"Shouldn't it?" the boy beside him asked innocently. "Because it very definitely _is._ "

"It doesn't belong to me," he explained in exasperation, looking pointedly at the boy. "It shouldn't be here."

"Oh… OH!" exclaimed the teenager once he recognized the object. "This is Kyoko's key, isn't it?!"

Ren nodded, pondering what it could possibly be doing in his own mind. While it was true that he was the only one of the two of them that could hold or use the key, it seemed odd that something that did not physically exist was somehow able to manifest itself in a place other than the one in which it was created. His thoughts then took a frightening turn as he considered, for a moment, whether or not it meant that his being in Keypointe had some connection to her predicament. He felt the first icy fingers of dread creep into the pit of his stomach at that thought.

"That's impossible," he said out loud, trying to reassure himself.

"Is it?" the younger of the two questioned.

"How do you know what I'm thinking?" he eyed the person beside him carefully.

The boy rolled his eyes, "I'm _you_! Even if we are somewhat fractured parts, I can still make a more than educated guess."

"Okay, that aside," Ren shook his head dismissively. "Why wouldn't it be impossible? If any of this is because of what I… what _we_ did, shouldn't I remember her? I couldn't have caused something like that—if I even knew how to in the first place—in the mind of someone I've never met."

"When was the last time you even looked at your memories from back then?" the teen said in a challenging tone. "Are you absolutely certain you don't remember her?"

"Yes, and I'll prove it," Ren straightened up, accepting the challenge.

He collected his jacket from the bench and bent again to pick up the key, placing it carefully back in its designated pocket. Slipping the jacket back over his shoulders, he stood and stalked off towards his memory archives in a determined stride. His younger self bid his animal friends farewell before getting up himself to follow behind him.

The shelves with those particular memories were matte with dust and neglect. The boy was right in that respect; it had been a considerably long time since he last revisited these memories. Then again, it made sense as they were from a very painful time in his life. It was better that he did not dwell on those particular memories as they were often emotionally crippling. However, this time was different. He had a point to prove… to himself.

"That summer was exactly the same as the others," he said as he lightly dragged a finger along the spines of the books on the shelf, looking for the ones he wanted. "I went hiking with Dad and shopping with Mom and played in the woods by myself when I was alone."

The younger man shrugged beside him, but said nothing in response. Ren stopped on a book from a day one week before the Incident. Hooking a finger around the top of the spine, he carefully pulled at it before fully opening his hand to remove it from the shelf. He took a deep breath and blew as much of the dust as he could off the cover, then used his hand to brush off the rest before opening it.

"See?" he said confidently. "It's exactly as I said, the same—"

His words were stolen from his mouth, along with his very breath. The book lay open in his palms and he fought to process what he was seeing. Reeling as he tried to consider what it meant and how exactly it happened. The book was empty.

"How?!" was all he managed to gasp.

The book dropped from his trembling hands, as if it were a white-hot iron from the depths of a fire. Ren immediately looked back up and pulled another book from the shelf beside the gap left by the one now on the floor. He flipped through it frantically before it, too, joined the other one by his feet. Suddenly, his hands moved swiftly along the entire shelf, fingers scrabbling as they pulled volume after volume off only to confirm that nothing but blank pages lay within. One by one, they all fell to the ground accompanied only by the sound of flapping pages and a woody thud upon impact.

He soon joined them as the strength in his legs gave out and he sank to his knees, one hand dragging along the shelves as if to somehow slow his descent. Dread wrapped around his throat and held him in a vice grip. His stomach twisted itself in to so many knots, those knots were soon knotting themselves together into a coagulated, tangled mess. This was unexpected and it was not a good sign in the least.

"How do I not have any memories from then?" his voice was inexplicably hoarse as he spoke.

"I'm guessing," his previously silent companion now timidly spoke. "That key in your pocket might be an invitation for you to figure that out."

"Does that mean that she and I—," he broke off. "That we—"

"Maybe this is good thing," the boy tried calming him in a soothing voice. "I mean, I thought you two had sorta hit another snag anyway. Perhaps you'll both learn something important from this."

"But, she doesn't know I was in Keypointe back then," Ren's voice rose in volume and he nearly yelled before calming himself. "If this is here, then I am somehow involved. And, if I'm involved, I'll have to explain to her why and you know very well what could potentially be exposed."

"You don't know that for sure," his younger self posited.

"True, but the odds are not in our favor," Ren reasoned. "Do you really think it's a good idea for us to restart a country-wide witch hunt when we'll be the first ones tied to the stake?"

"That's only _if_ the two of you reveal the truth to everyone," the younger man raised his voice with conviction. "Think for a second, will you? She has just as much to hide from the Academy if this comes to light. If she thinks she's a lab rat now, she'll be a bacteria culture in no time."

"That would still mean I'd have to tell her about me," he maintained obstinately.

"Call me crazy, but I get the feeling she'd be more understanding than most about that," the boy shrugged again. "Besides, you still haven't figured out if that key is even usable here. Right now, we just have an odd collection of coincidences."

"True, I supposed it would have to serve a purpose here as well for it to show up," Ren nodded thoughtfully. "Any guesses as to how it would work if, indeed, it does?"

The younger man looked at the older one with a wary leer, "I think you know as well as I do."

"I really don't."

"Oh, don't play with me _'Ren',_ " the boy said, clearly irritated. "If this is actually meant to tell you that there's some connection between the two of you, where's the _one_ place that this would most likely be used?"

Ren gave him a withering look before his shoulders sagged and he looked down towards his knees. Then at the disheveled pile of books before him. A guttural sigh escaped him and he rested his head in his hands before nodding weakly. He knew _precisely_ where the key might be used. That did not mean he was any more enthused about going there. Like this particular shelf in his archives, it was the last place he ever chose to frequent in his own mind so of _course_ it would be there.

He left his mind momentarily to find out what the time was. The meeting had only been in session for about three-quarters of an hour, there was still at least another forty or fifty minutes to go if their previous track record was anything to go by. Returning to his mindscape, he went back to where he had been to find the boy perched on the armrest of one of the many chairs in the lounging area.

"Care to join me on an excursion?" he asked the teen, who shook his head and chuckled.

"Too scared to go by yourself, huh?" he teased. "I suppose I can find some time for you in my _extremely_ busy schedule."

"Well if you come along, I'd still be going _with_ myself, so it's really not any better."

"You have a point," the boy relented. "I guess now's as good a time as any to see if there's something to all of this."

If one were to describe a mindscape as having finite boundaries with a defined shape, they could certainly say that the intended destination lay in the far corner of Ren's mind. For the sake of easily understanding the location, this is a fairly apt description as they were headed to a rarely visited and purposely neglected area.

Ren took ample time to make his way over to the spot being in no hurry to get there right away. It was always going to be there, so time was only of the essence in the respect that he kept an ear out for the sounds of the meeting adjourning. Really, he was merely stalling for time and the younger version of himself that accompanied him was well aware of that fact. As they got nearer, he found he was being pulled along by the hand.

They stopped at a gravel path that led to a daffodil colored house nestled in a cluster of tall, lush trees. Bright green shrubs snuggled tightly against the sides of the house and a narrow bed of perennials flowered along the border. The boy, still holding his hand, dragged him unceremoniously down the path, up the front steps and through the bright crimson door. Once inside, they stood in silence in the entryway, not knowing how to proceed. Ren distracted himself from the discomfort of being in the mental recreation of his family's vacation home by primly straightening out his sleeves.

"You didn't have to pull me like that," he said gruffly, but quietly as if he was hesitant to disturb the eerie quiet of the empty house. "I would've made it in here on my own."

"Sometimes it's best to just rip the bandage off quickly," the teen said nonchalantly. "Gets the unpleasantness over with faster."

"If you say so," Ren mumbled. "Where should we start?"

"No idea," the boy said, nonplussed. "But let's start _somewhere_."

They wandered through the living room, taking in the comforting, familiar decor; bright curtains hanging at the window that matched the muted print on the two bergère chairs across from the large sectional that curled around the heavy, solid wood coffee table. He fondly remembered how much his mother enjoyed decorating this house as it was much smaller and cozier than their home in Astetra. The kitchen had the obvious, telltale traces of his father; professional-grade cookware, a large gas stove and wall-mounted oven and, of course, the hilariously garish apron hanging beside the refrigerator that said 'kiss the cook' in bright green letters.

Ren gently ran a hand over the grey and white geometric patterned duvet on his parents bed as he walked through their room, not noticing the smile that formed on his face at the sight of the various family photos displayed throughout. Despite how much the underlying hurt of being reminded of the events that took place, he found it difficult to not enjoy the chance to reminisce a little. As they continued to walk through the house, he became less reluctant to interact with what was there. He found himself opening every closet and set of drawers they came across as he assumed he would not find anything of note in any of those places.

At least, that is, until they made it to his room. When they entered, he took in the eyeful of blues, greens and yellows that was the overall color scheme and immediately froze. If there was anything to discover, the chances were good that it would be in here. The knots in his stomach began to form again and he felt a light push at his back. A pair of green eyes urged him forward as the push became more forceful. He gave in with a light sigh and began to scan the walls and floor of the room.

By the time they had opened every cabinet, closet and bureau in his room—and looked underneath the bed—the pair decided there was nothing to be found. Perhaps they were both wrong about it being in the house. Maybe his teenaged self was right and it really was just an odd collection of coincidences; not that it explained _his_ missing memories in any way. He almost wanted there to be a connection for that reason alone.

Ren led the way back towards the front of the house, stopping in the hall leading to the entryway. He turned to the boy behind him and jabbed a thumb towards the nondescript door on the wall beside him.

"You know, I don't remember this coat closet being here," he said.

"I don't either," the boy confirmed with a shake of his head before walking up to it and turning the knob. "It's also locked."

"Why would it be—," Ren choked on the remainder of his sentence at the realization that all but slapped him in the face.

"Well, go on and get the key out," his younger self said with urgency. "Let's see if it works!"

He fumbled around his coat pocket before his unsteady hands closed around the key contained within. Swallowing thickly, he brought the key out and slowly lowered it towards the keyhole nestled in the doorknob. It slid home with absolutely no resistance and both men took a deep breath in unison before the key was turned. The only sound was of the tumblers in the lock moving aside and the resounding click as the door unlatched. Ren jerked his hand away, swiftly removing the key along with it and the door swung open following the momentum.

They did not have to go any further through the door as, true to the nature of coat closets, the interior was rather shallow. However, instead of shoe racks and coat hangers, there was one bookshelf, not unlike the ones in his memory archives. It seemed to be a bit much considering each shelf was empty save for one. On the fourth shelf from the bottom, there was only one book, laying on its side and sitting perfectly in the middle as if it were on display.

Ren snatched the book off the shelf and went to open it. What he found was not the populated pages of his memories. Rather, there were no pages at all. The book was merely a box masquerading as something it was not. The lid opened with a pop and a head of blond hair poked itself around his shoulder to get a better look.

Inside, surrounded by what appeared to be dried rose petals, was a stone with chipped edges in an oval shape. It was a deep blue that nearly bordered on purple, he noticed, as he reached in to pick it up and let it sit in the palm of his hand. He thought back to the teardrop shaped stone in Kyoko's memories and his skin prickled all over. Looking behind them, his mind also took note of the location of the door in the hallway. His parents found him slumped against that very wall in that very spot when they returned home the evening after the Incident.

"Well, there's no doubt now that we're definitely connected," he heard a younger version of his voice say.

The knots were back with a vengeance, nearly forcing their way out through his throat. Before he had time to give in to the panic, he heard the distinct sound of chairs scraping along a floor. The meeting had adjourned and he needed to leave with the others before someone realized he was otherwise distracted. Quickly pocketing the stone with the key, he vanished from his mind without so much as a goodbye.

There definitely was no doubt that he and Kyoko were connected. There was also no doubt that he could never tell her.

* * *

Kyoko was still struggling with the after effects of the conversation she had with Sho the previous day and the weight of the suggestion he made before he left. She was trying her hardest to get her wayward thoughts under control when when Ren arrived in their usual meeting room in the hospital. When she gave him her usual smile in greeting upon his entry and he responded with a flat, grim expression, she knew something was going to happen. Something was going to happen and she, most likely, would not like it.

He sat stiffly across from her at the table and she waited apprehensively for him to finally speak. Her leg shook as she bounced it rapidly up and down, not caring that it caused the table to shake. Snapping her eyes to his when he cleared his throat, she saw him open his mouth to speak.

"I came to tell you that I have to cancel my commitment to our appointments," he said at last and her heart sunk to her shoes.

"What?! Why?" she gasped, her lungs were suddenly having a hard time getting enough air. "If your boss is giving you too much work, I will tell him myself how important you are to helping me."

"That is not the case…" he offered, but said nothing further.

"Then what _is_ it?"

"There has been a… conflict of interest," he explained hesitantly.

"A conflict of interest?" she asked, her voice pitching up towards the end. "Care to elaborate on that?"

"I apologize, but I cannot," he said flatly, as if he had practiced saying it to the point that it lost all meaning. "I only wanted to tell you in person because I owed you that much at least."

Well, that, and his boss had mandated that he tell her in person.

"Oh, well thanks _so_ much for telling me that you're effectively abandoning me," she spat the words out like they were poison in her mouth.

"I regret that it has come to this," he said, again in the same monotone.

"Oh _do_ you?!" she sneered in mock surprise. "You were the last resort that was brought in here because nothing else was working. This is the closest I've ever been to figuring out what's wrong with me and now it's being taken away me and all you can say is you regret it?"

"I do not know what else to say," his replies were starting to sound almost robotic.

"Of course not, you've obviously already said your piece," she said bitterly. "You don't care that this was my best chance. My _only_ chance. That these appointments were one of the things I looked forward to the most each week."

Ren sat there silently, looking just over her left shoulder as he found he could not look her in the eyes. Internally, he was waging war against himself as he wanted to comfort her and tell her everything but he had already made his choice. There was no way she, or anyone else, could know about him. He had to protect himself, even if it was at the cost of her recovering her missing memories. And his for that matter. They were better off never knowing that their lives were somehow intertwined. He would take that secret, along with all of the others, to his grave.

"And we were _so_ _close_ too! I could feel it," she said with a whine.

"I doubt that was the case," the words were out of his mouth before he could stop them and he strained to keep a straight face, lest it betray how badly he wanted to wince.

"Well, I guess we'll never know for sure now, will we?" she threw up her hands, limp wrists flicking them backwards as they moved.

"You know, I felt so proud that we might've become friends considering how most people treat you. I saw past all the rumors and whatever this stoic front you keep up is," she motioned towards him as she spoke. "But, now that you're pushing me away, I wonder why I even tried at all. Clearly, there's nothing more to you than that."

"You are entitled to think that," he said calmly.

"You're not even going to argue with me on this?" she asked defeatedly, disappointed that even her attempt to rile him was ineffective. "You won't even defend yourself?"

"I do not see how that will accomplish anything other than making you more upset," he remained placid and unmovable.

Kyoko let out an aggravated groan at this.

"The worst part of this is I can _tell_ you don't want to do this. This isn't like the person I've come to know. I know you're just trying to come off as callous hoping that I'll get mad and walk away because you won't explain to me why this is happening and…" she took a shuddering breath and he could almost hear the imminent tears in her voice. "Honestly, Ren, it's heartbreaking."

She abruptly got up from her chair and it screeched nastily against the ground. He flinched. Her arms hung limply at her sides and she suddenly looked so tired, like she had aged ten years in five minutes. Still, he said nothing. There was nothing to say. He was well aware of the fact that he was hurting her in this moment—it hurt him as well, if he was honest—but his mind was already made up.

"Since you're clearly not going to engage me, just go," she dismissed him, pointing to the door. "I'm sure this is the moment you've been waiting for since you arrived so you can leave now."

He rose from his chair quietly and, with a cold nod, he resolutely turned towards the door.

"I thought you were one of the few people who believed in me and made me feel like maybe I wasn't crazy after all. I thought maybe you believed in me enough to tell me what's really going on. You know I would've understood, even—," she called after him, pausing to blink her eyes rapidly to keep them dry. "Even if it was a secret, I wouldn't tell anyone. I mean, who would I even tell?"

"I'm sorry, Kyoko," he said softly, his voice finally betraying the emotions he struggled to keep hidden. "I really am. But, it's for the best."

The short walk to the door suddenly felt like he was trudging through molasses. His feet dragged as he fought to keep them moving and he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head. He did not realize anything was off until he opened the door and made his first step out into the hallway. Looking to his left, he saw his ever-present companion in the middle of reading through a set of papers, only his hand remained hovered over the corner of one of the pages. Ren blinked, expecting the hand to continue its descent and turn the page but nothing happened. It was then he noticed the other people in the hallway, frozen in mid-stride as if they were in a photograph.

He turned back around to look inside the room just in time to see Kyoko's eyes roll back in her head before her legs gave way underneath her and she dropped to the floor. Instantly, the noise of shoes walking down the hallway returned and he found he could move easily once more. Letting the door slam closed, he rushed to her side, picking her limp body off the floor. Her long, black hair cascaded through his fingers in tendrils as he gently lifted her head. When Yukihito poked his head inside the door after hearing it shut so violently, he saw his charge sitting on the ground with the unconscious girl in his arms and his eyes blown wide in fear.

"Get help," was all he said to the older man and he quickly obeyed.

Suddenly, the words of his younger self echoed in his mind.

 _"She has just as much to hide from the Academy if this comes to light."_

Ren's thoughts ground to a halt at that. He definitely raised a good point, one Ren was too panicked to consider at the time he made his decision. Kyoko had every reason to not reveal that she was in any way related to the Keypointe Incident. She was already under intense scrutiny as it was and that would only serve to intensify it. He frowned as he cursed himself for being so selfish. There was more than just his future at stake now. Especially now that he witnessed her ability. It was one that would definitely get the attention of not only their own Academy, but Academies all over the world.

His grip tightened around her body as he continued to admonish himself silently. He was so caught up in protecting his own identity, he never realized that she was the one who was really in need of protection.

* * *

 **HOPEFULLY THIS WILL TIDE YOU OVER UNTIL NEXT MONTH: Since I have a bunch of stuff coming up towards the end of the month, I probably won't be able to update two weeks from now as per the usual unless I get a lot done in a short period of time. As such, I hope this will be enough to keep you satisfied until then. I actually started to end this chapter at the second line break up there but realized that was way too cruel (or maybe not cruel enough?) so I kept going. Anyway, things seem to be heating up and I hope you're as excited as I am!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	12. Worries

**CHAPTER 11: WORRIES**

The sight of Kyoko's tiny frame sleeping under the pristine, white hospital blanket caused a sharp pain in Ren's chest and he tried not to clutch at it as he peeked through the small window in the door to her room. Engulfed in guilt to the point that he was nearly drowning in it, he wanted nothing more than to apologize for how horribly he treated her. The young woman standing outside the door regarded him with a wary look that was just this side of irritated. Her arms were crossed tightly in front of her and she stared unblinkingly into his eyes. He got the feeling she was challenging him, though he had no idea why.

"She specifically requested that you were not allowed to see her," the woman said.

"I suppose I should have expected that," he said quietly.

"Then why are you here?"

"Because I want—," he shook his head once, that was not quite right. "I need to speak with her."

"Well, your needs will have to take a seat," she quirked an eyebrow at his insistence. "Not only does she not want to see you but, as you can see, she needs to rest. I suggest you continue on your way before I have to ask someone to assist you."

"I will leave, there's no need for force," he held up his hands in a placating manner. "Just, please, tell her I'm very sorry."

She looked at him steadily for several beats, her eyes narrowed as she studied him. Ren knew she was an empath and assumed she must be assessing his emotions. Under typical circumstances, he was not one to make his own emotional state easily readable to others, whether or not they had an ability to do so. Keeping himself completely closed off helped protect him in more ways than one. In this particular instance however, he wanted her to know the extent of his sincerity so he let her have it at full force. Her eyes widened briefly at the intensity of his emotions before she blinked once. Then again.

"Good," she said appraisingly, satisfied by what she found. "I don't know exactly what you did, but I know you hurt her. If you weren't repentant, I would've decked you where you stand."

"I am hoping I can make it up to her but, for now, I shall leave," he nodded grimly then turned to walk away.

Kanae did not need her empathic abilities to tell the taller man was telling the truth. She could almost see the overwhelming amount of remorse that manifested on his face. Whatever he had done to upset her friend the day before was obviously causing him no small amount of grief. Kyoko had been tight-lipped about what exactly had transpired between them, but the amount of anger and hurt she picked up from her indicated it was something fairly serious. Knowing she would need time to come to terms with her feelings without him coming around to trigger a relapse, she stood firm on the request that he not be allowed to see her.

They would eventually have their chance to reconcile, once Kyoko was no longer sleeping in a hospital bed. At least, she hoped they would. That man seemed to have a transformative effect on Kyoko in a good way.

Once he turned the corner down the hallway, Ren waited anxiously until he heard the sound of a door open and close. Peeking around the corner, he saw that Kanae was no longer in front of the door to Kyoko's door, having gone inside the room. He walked as swiftly and quietly as possible back to the room before taking a seat in the chair beside the door where the young woman had previously been sitting. He would have to be quick as he did not know how much time he had available to try this, but he was unable to walk away without leaving a message of another sort for her. One only she would find.

This was his best bet. Granted, he had no way of telling how long it would take her to find it, or if she would find it at all. She would most likely be extremely upset with him for doing it. However, he was already taking a huge risk by being here so he may as well commit. The desired reaction was that she would be angry enough that he did this without her consent to track him down. He was relying on the fact that she would take issue with it personally and seek him out instead of reporting him. At least, he hoped he knew her well enough at this point.

Her mindscape was nothing short of a tempest. The trees and other foliage around him swayed and bowed as they were buffeted about to the point that some of them nearly doubled over. Strong winds whipped his hair into his face, making it hard for him to see, not to mention extremely difficult to move. Above him, the clouds were deep grey and swirled menacingly. The only saving grace, he thought, was that there was no rain to be found. That made his hastily cobbled together plan a bit easier to implement.

Making his way over to the wall, he decided to work beside the door as it would hopefully be more easily noticeable. Thankfully that wretched pile of stones he tripped on during their first venture through the wall was still there. He sifted through the pile until he found one that looked relatively softer than the others. Gripping it tightly between his fingers, he staggered against the wind until he reached the wall. A test scratch against the surface revealed a visible mark and he breathed a sigh of relief. Bracing his other hand against the wall to keep him upright, he began to write.

Once he was done, he quietly slipped away to meet Yukihito downstairs, but not before taking one last look at the door. It was time for him to start formulating some sort of cover for the two of them and he was going to have to enlist the help of a certain superior. Since he was already scheduled to attend a meeting with him, he would take advantage of that.

* * *

Ren's usual seat was waiting for him when he arrived in Lory's office, but he opted for one of the more comfortable offerings instead. His boss raised a quizzical eyebrow at this but said nothing. After Yukihito gave his general report of the previous day's events, he was excused from the room. When the door closed quietly behind him, Lory regarded the younger man with a contemplative look. They sat staring at each other for a moment, the silence threatening to wholly engulf them under the weight of unspoken words. Finally, the Chief spoke first.

"I haven't seen a look like the one on your face right now since you were in your teens. Are you about to start with the dramatics again?"

A retort was on the tip of his tongue when he dismissed it with a shake of his head, "No, I've actually come to ask for your help as this particular situation lies somewhat in your area of expertise."

"And what exactly do you mean by my 'area of expertise'?" Lory asked carefully.

"I need to get her out of here," Ren said earnestly without pretext. "If they find out what she is, she'll never be able to leave here again."

"I see," he said, resting his chin in the palm of his hand. "I take it this has something to do with what happened yesterday?"

"I've seen what her ability is. She's—," he stopped when he saw Chief Takarada shake his head with a glare.

"No, don't tell me. It's better that I don't know," he explained. "Tell me exactly what you need help with regarding her."

"I'm honestly not too sure," he admitted. "But, once the Academy figures what she can do, there'll be no escape for her."

Lory grunted, "Is she that strong?"

"She's like nothing anyone has seen before," he said reverently. "Ever."

"You're the only one who knows what it is, right?" The Chief asked, circumspect. "Why not just lie that you never saw it?"

"I can, but only for so long. At some point, something is going to give; whether it's her or the Academy."

His fingers drummed along the desk before him as he thought, "Then, why don't we wait until that happens?"

"What? Why?"

"We can't exactly spirit someone away who has the full attention of the Academy on them without too many people noticing," he pointed out. "Wouldn't it be much better for them to dismiss her themselves?"

It seemed like a decent tactic, Ren thought. If Kyoko could conceal or keep her ability locked away, they could convince her physician that it was pointless to keep trying. Of course, that meant he would have to convince Kyoko herself, if she was ever willing to talk to him again. Not that he had much choice in the matter at this point. If he was unable to warn her, she would be in far more danger than she already was.

"That… does make a lot of sense."

"Of course it does. That's why you came to me, right?" Lory said, his lips lifting in a self-satisfied smirk. "Anyway, I get the feeling that wasn't everything you came here to talk about."

"Well that's the second part of the equation, I suppose…"

"Meaning?" he urged him to continue.

"It turns out I may very well be the reason she can't access her ability."

The Chief leaned forward in interest now as he awaited an explanation. Ren's body sagged into the cushioning of his chair as he began his tale of finding the key, it's subsequent appearance in his own mind and what he eventually found there. He wavered only when he got to the point in the story where he made the decision to not tell Kyoko about what he found and her reaction. He felt physically exhausted after so much exposition, but there was no other way for the older man to make any sense of the convoluted mess in which he was now involved.

"And you, for whatever reason, thought it was a good idea to just leave her? What in the world were you even thinking?" Chief Takarada scolded him.

"I thought it was better for both of us if the truth was never revealed," Ren defended weakly.

"Correction; you thought it was better for you." his boss growled angrily. "I should have you officially reprimanded for making a decision like that without my knowledge. In fact, I think I will."

Ren shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but offered nothing further.

"You're on forced leave without pay for the next week," He said sternly. "Take this time to think about what you've done and how you plan on fixing it."

"Yes, sir."

"And you'll just have to bear all this girl's secret on your own until she's ready to talk to you again. She needs to be the first person you tell about her abilities. No one else," Lory maintained. "You and I can't work on a plan until she knows the true extent of her involvement."

"I was afraid you'd say that."

"Then you'd better work on your groveling," he said with a sardonic grin. "I doubt she'll welcome you back with open arms after you pulled a stunt like that."

"I'll do that, sir."

"You're dismissed," Chief Takarada finished, bidding the younger man to leave his office.

Lory watched as Ren dragged himself from the chair and trudged out the door, his shoulders rounded in a deep slouch. He shook his head as the door closed behind him with a click. As much as he hated to be hard on him, it was for his own good. And, in this particular situation, it was for his own good as much as it was for the young woman in question. It may have appeared on the outside as nothing more than a disciplinary action but, once again, he was protecting that very same boy from so many years ago.

Well, what he was unaware of would not hurt him. Especially since Ren now had more than his fair share of secrets to carry. At the very least, Lory had a good cover for when the doctors would eventually contact him demanding an explanation about his subordinate. He smiled to himself. A little plausible deniability would go a long way.

* * *

Kyoko was still angry. Kanae had been dutiful in respectfully passing along the Inquisitor's message once she awoke. She said he was sorry. Sorry seemed a meager recompense for sending her into a hospital bed with ill-chosen, selfish words. According to her friend, he was genuine about his remorse. As well he should be, she thought. Ren could sit and stew on his apology for the time being, as far as she was concerned.

At least, that was the story she was sticking to for now. In reality, she was more than just a little concerned about the fact that he wanted to dissolve their working relationship so abruptly. His attitude when they last met worried her to the point of distraction. She could tell he was hiding something. Something he felt he had to protect himself from. He said it was 'for the best,' as if he made his decision under compulsion. She wondered what had him so terrified that he would callously cut ties with her.

Ultimately, she decided she would leave him alone… for now. Whether she wanted to seek him out herself or have him to come to her, she had not yet decided. She had time to figure it out.

Instead, she wanted to work on seeking answers from a different source; reluctantly, if she was completely honest. This opportunity was one of the last avenues she had remaining to explore. However it was also the one of the last places she wanted to be. She drew painfully closer to her destination with each step and found herself deliberately slowing down. The only silver lining she could find was that it got her away from the Academy grounds for a few hours.

Plodding down the sidewalk, she took in the sights of the city; bustling people moving swiftly on foot from one place to another and rumbling vehicles that zoomed down the streets and honked at the occasional passerby that got in the way. The sounds were familiar and ones she heard often when she would walk to her old job downtown. It seemed ages ago since she had done this, back when she called the city her new home—as opposed to her prison—when it had only been a matter of weeks.

The office building she approached in the business district was like any other in the city; all darkened stone and towering panes of glass. How something could look simultaneously boring and intimidating was a wonder to Kyoko, but she had an inkling her impressions were influenced by what lay inside for her. She made a request for this appointment to be made once Dr. Asami cleared her from recovery to resume her regular activities. At least doing this seemed less daunting than deciding how to approach Ren.

She was happy that Kanae seemed to also be of the opinion that she should hear him out; and she would. It would also be nice to finally have someone that might be able to fill in the blanks of what exactly happened towards the end of their meeting. She remembered their conversation. That was devastating enough that she was unable to forget it. However, what happened after that to land her in a recovery room for the better part of a day was completely lost to her.

Her worries over that particular event seemed to provide enough of a distraction that she found herself inside the building and standing at the reception desk without fully remembering how she got there. The desk attendant looked at her curiously and she wondered how long she stood there without saying anything. She stood up a little straighter and cleared her throat.

"I have a ten o'clock appointment with Ms. Mogami," she said as calmly as she could manage.

"Your name?"

"Kyoko—," she paused briefly. "Kyoko Mogami."

She was led down a hallway that was so plain and monotonous, its only saving graces were the intermittently placed potted plants that were either fake or cared for obsessively as they were all uniformly green with glossy leaves. It reminded her of the hallways in the Academy hospital; she suppressed a shudder at that thought. Once seated in a tiny meeting room that, most likely, was an exact copy of several similar rooms on that floor, she was given a glass of water and asked to wait.

Within minutes, the door to the room opened and a woman, who looked to be in her early forties, walked in dressed neatly in a navy blue skirt suit. As always, her hair was pulled low and tight in a bun and she wore her constant look of placid disapproval on her face. Saena Mogami eyed her daughter warily as she sat rigidly in the chair across the table from her.

"I was surprised to hear that you requested to see me of your own volition," she said, resting her hands flat on top of the table. "Have you gotten into some sort of trouble?"

"Not exactly," Kyoko was unsure as to how to phrase her situation. "But I have come to you for help, in a way."

"I told you when you decided to leave for the city with that boy that I would not support you financially," Saena reminded her harshly.

"No, that's not what this is about," the younger woman said, shaking her head, trying to get back on track. "I believe the Academy has contact you to let you know that I am with them?"

"It was a fairly brief missive with no real details but, yes. I never knew the Academy to inform family members when they hire Duds for clerical work," her words sounded clipped and irritated. "You are technically an adult in their eyes."

"I'm not employed by them," Kyoko struggled to remain calm against her mother's abrasiveness.

Saena's brow furrowed, "Are you being paid to be experimented on?"

"No! Goodness, no," Kyoko nearly shouted, then took a deep breath. "They think I may have had an Awakening."

She gave her mother a brief explanation of what occurred, from what she could remember at least. The events that occurred after she woke up with no recollection of what happened the day before and her subsequent residence at the Academy. She glossed over much of the different attempts at cognitive therapy that were attempted, to say nothing of how much she sugar coated her involvement with one Inquisitor in particular. Kyoko watched the furrow in the woman's brow slowly transform into a canyon as she continued to talk. It seemed as if she was not only deeply troubled by what was being said, but she also seemed to doubt the authenticity.

"Why are you looking at me like you don't believe me?" She finally asked.

Saena sighed, "Because it is statistically improbable for you to have an ability."

"I… don't think I understand what you mean."

Another sigh, "This is not something I planned on sharing with you. When you were younger, I thought I might have to with the way you were always so eager about having an Awakening but, I thought you'd grown to accept that it might not happen as you aged."

"I'm still not following," Kyoko frowned in confusion.

"Kyoko, the reason I refused to talk about your father after he left was because he lied to me," she explained finally. "He lied to both of us."

"About what exactly?"

"He did not work for the Academy as a sympath," Saena said pointedly. "He worked in the administration offices as an Unaugmented employee."

Kyoko stared at her mother dumfounded.

"He only came clean about it when your test results came back from the doctor after your pre-ability assessment on your fourth birthday," she clarified. "Like myself, his family comes from a long line of Unaugmenteds."

"S-so, you're saying…"

"You were given less than a one percent chance of ever developing an ability," her mother's voice almost sounded sad, perhaps even a bit guilty. "I know you expected to have an Awakening at some point in your life but, Kyoko, it was never going to happen."

* * *

 **JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WAS OUT: My work commitments finished a few hours earlier than I anticipated they would today, so I took the small boon of time I got to fill in the blanks I was still struggling with. So, hooray! I get a little extra time to myself and you get a brand new chapter. Lucky you! I'll see you all here again in two weeks!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	13. Disclosure

**CHAPTER 12: DISCLOSURE**

When Saena Mogami met the man she would eventually marry, she would never think to apply the words 'lovestruck' or 'smitten' to herself. Sure, she greatly enjoyed the company of this man and felt more than a general admiration for him but she never pegged herself as the head-over-heels type. It seemed terribly impractical to her. All she really wanted was a child, there was no reason to get pointless feelings mixed up in the process.

But, oh, how wrong she was.

It was at a restaurant that they both happened to frequent where they first met. As the lunch hour was a busy time for the establishment, they ended up sharing a table together. It was unclear as to who started the conversation first, but they both continued it over many subsequent meetings. Each more enthralling than the last.

However, her mind was already made up as to what she wanted from any relationship. Saena wanted to bear a child that had the chance at a better future than she did. All she wanted to do was level the playing field for the next generation. As an Unaugmented, there was little else she _could_ do, so she sought out a partner that would give her offspring a higher likelihood of developing an ability. She was straightforward with him about this when they decided to play the dating game, hoping it would eventually lead to marriage and children.

She never counted on actually falling in love with him.

Without warning, she found herself preening in his presence and paying more attention to her appearance whenever she was going to see him. For some reason, his opinion of how she looked suddenly mattered to her. When she returned home after their dates, she would try to valiantly exorcise him from her brain. The effect he had on her was wholly unnecessary. It was very alarming behavior, as far as she was concerned, but she had no idea how to stop. His smiles were like sunshine through the clouds and his voice was a symphony to her ears.

The smile on her face from their wedding photos was blindingly brilliant and genuine. In her quest to find someone to pass the chances of an ability down to her child, she found a partner with whom she truly felt a deep connection. Someone she legitimately wanted to spend the rest of her life with. The way he constantly doted on her and brought her small gifts and bouquets of wildflowers filled her with a happiness she could not describe. When they disagreed, they made sure to hear each other's opinion fully. Any problems they faced, they faced it together. In a million years, Saena Mogami never would have wagered that she would find someone who fit her so perfectly.

Of course, that made the eventual betrayal hurt all the more.

He tearfully confessed to her after the official results of their daughter's assessment arrived in the mail. Because she admitted to having a particular interest in him due to the fact that he lied about having an ability, he played along for a while thinking she would eventually get bored with him and move on. As they grew closer and their relationship became more serious, he was finding it harder and harder to tell her the truth. He was afraid of losing the person who had come to mean so much to him and he kept up the charade for years.

Saena went from confused and completely blindsided to livid in an instant. The fact that he kept the pretense for so long hurt only a little more than the fact that she never noticed the inconsistencies that would have told her something was amiss. But, she noticed them now; like how he rarely, if ever, used his abilities at home. Saena always assumed either his work took a lot out of him or he felt uncomfortable flaunting his ability around her when she did not have one. To his credit, he must have had an incredible talent for reading people to be able to fake being a sympath. When he did use his 'ability,' he was usually spot-on in identifying her emotions.

Had he told her before Kyoko was conceived, she probably would have forgiven him. Artificial insemination was becoming more mainstream at the time and, maybe, they could have looked into that as an alternative. Even though he could not genetically provide the type of child she desired, she was not about to give up on the man she had come to love. As evidenced by their first few years with Kyoko, he was a wonderful father. But, to wait until it was too late was too much to forgive.

After she forbid him from coming near her or Kyoko again, Saena was left with signed divorce papers and a child conceived under false pretenses. Something she was reminded of every day she saw the little girl's face. Predictably, this created a strained relationship between the two of them that lasted until her daughter finally made the decision to leave home. Thus, she made the only decision she thought was right; the only way she thought they could properly move on. She tried to erase the traces of the man who betrayed them from both of their lives.

Kyoko remained wide-eyed after her mother concluded her story. Slowly, she reached towards the glass that sat before her and took a generous gulp of water. Her throat was suddenly, and inexplicably, parched.

"I do not doubt your father's love for either of us," Saena added. "That was never in question. But, the fact that he kept such an important thing hidden from me was unforgivable."

"I understand why you made the decision you did, I think," Kyoko said slowly with a nod. "It would be hard to trust anyone after something like that."

"I apologize for not telling you sooner, Kyoko. I assumed you were better off not knowing and didn't think a situation, like the one you are currently in, would ever occur," her shoulders raised slightly in the barest hint of a shrug. "Hopefully this is somewhat helpful for you."

"Honestly, I had come here only to ask if you remembered any of the children I played with during the summer Sho and his family were out of town," Kyoko admitted. "I wasn't exactly prepared for all of… this."

"I—I see. I'm sorry."

"No, I needed to know this," Kyoko gave her mother a tiny smile. "I'm glad you finally told me."

Saena waited several seconds, as if deciding whether or not to say more, before taking a deep breath, "I'm guessing Sho never told you the real reason they were gone that summer."

"I thought they were on vacation," the younger woman looked confused.

"They were," she nodded. "It was a vacation they had postponed for about two years."

"… Why?"

"From what his parents told me, Sho was afraid to leave you on your own after your father left because you had no other friends. He begged them to not go that year," she explained. "The following year they were both too busy running their inn that they couldn't leave until the summer of the Incident."

"He did that… for me?" Kyoko did not believe what she was hearing.

"He probably never told you because he didn't want you thinking he took pity on you."

"Oh." That did sound like something he would do.

"As for the question that originally brought you here, I don't recall meeting any other friends that summer," she paused momentarily to make sure she did not forget anything. "However, you did mention meeting someone at the stream in the woods."

Kyoko leaned forward in interest. "Did I tell you anything else about them?"

"Not particularly," her mother shook her head. "When I'd ask where you were during the day you said you were playing with them. I'm sure you told me their name but the I only remember that it rhymed with a vegetable of some sort."

A snort made its way out of her nose involuntarily. What an odd connection to make. She wondered if every parent would allow their child to play every day with some other child they never met. Then again, her mother had already checked out by that time and her parenting was mostly limited to making sure Kyoko was fed and clothed.

"I'm afraid we will have to cut this conversation short," Saena straightened up in her chair after checking the watch on her wrist. "It's been over an hour and I have another meeting soon."

"Of course, sorry for interrupting your schedule with this," Kyoko apologized meekly.

"No apology necessary," her mother shook her head. "This was something you needed to be told."

"And I am grateful that you told me. I suppose I should see myself out?"

Her mother nodded and Kyoko rose from her chair and walked to the door. She turned to look back when her hand was on the knob and she saw her mother's eyes scanning her face.

"Kyoko, I know we haven't had the best relationship but—" she paused, brow furrowed as if she were deciding how to continue. "I do hope you'll take care of yourself."

"I will. Thanks," Kyoko smiled at the small display of concern and slipped out the door.

* * *

Chief Takarada was not at all surprised when Dr. Asami requested an appointment with him. The only surprise was that she waited as long as she did to do so. He figured she would be breathing down his neck the minute her ward was harmed. Instead, a couple of days had passed before he was summoned before her.

To be fair, 'summon' was a strong word to use. No one summoned Lory Takarada anywhere he was not inclined to go. His position put him above most people in the Academy, with the exception of the Assembly. He would be lying if he said that he did not use that to his advantage on occasion. As of the start of their meeting, he had not yet decided if this would be one such opportunity.

"I appreciate you taking the time to see me, Chief," she thanked him.

"As this concerns people for which you and I are both responsible, I knew this was important," he confirmed. "How can I help?"

"I wanted to compare notes on what happened the other day, if I could," she requested "Though, I have very little to go on as Kyoko was less than helpful in remembering anything."

"Well, I did ask Inquisitor Tsuruga and his attendant to submit detailed reports of the incident. What is it you want to know?"

He remained guarded in his replies as he tried to suss out what exactly Dr. Asami was looking for in terms of information. That allowed him to avoid offering anything additional that she did not need to know. After all, Inquisitors deal in uncovering secrets, not sharing them with anyone and everyone who asked.

Dr. Asami sighed, clearly realizing who she was talking to. Knowing that nothing would be freely presented to her, she switched tactics.

"Kyoko said she met with Inquisitor Tsuruga that day, as per their regular schedule, but she said she didn't remember what triggered her loss of consciousness," the doctor explained. "Other than that, she had little else to say. I wanted to hear the other side of the story."

Lory sat back in his chair and considered his response for a moment, "According to Ren, they tried something different that day and he may have… pushed her a little harder than normal. Knowing the range of my subordinate's talents, I'm sure you can imagine what happened after that."

It was technically true, he thought. If Kyoko was not providing any details about what happened, he would choose his words carefully.

"So, he has admitted this whole issue was his fault?" she asked in disbelief.

"He has taken responsibility for his actions," the Chief Inquisitor nodded. "As such, I have placed him on administrative leave—without pay, of course— for one week."

"I see," Dr. Asami said thoughtfully. "I suppose I should thank you for addressing this so quickly."

"No thanks necessary," Lory soothed with a smile. "I am simply doing what I must to properly manage my subordinates. He may be my best and brightest, but even he cannot act with impunity. I assume my Inquisitor will no longer be needed following this incident?"

"I'm honestly not sure at this point," the doctor admitted. "He was the only person to make any progress with her, but I already impressed upon her that these meetings would be halted if he harmed her in any way."

"I don't see what there is to be uncertain about then, Dr. Asami," he said patiently. "The terms of the agreement were breached."

"I know, I know, but… we won't get anywhere with her if he's no longer involved."

"Were you really getting somewhere to begin with? If I recall correctly, he was your last resort and, after several weeks, even he has little to show for it," Lory pointed out. "If my strongest Inquisitor was unable to get any real results, would it be prudent to continue to put her mental and physical health in danger?"

He was goading her, despite the fact that it was really not his place to interfere. As this was not his area of expertise, he had no authority or sway. However, if he properly planted the seeds of doubt, hopefully it would result in Kyoko's eventual dismissal. It was worth a try, at least.

"If she has an ability, we are required to assess it and properly train her to use it," she reminded sternly.

"That is a very big 'if,' Doctor." he countered. "According to the file that was shared with me, there was no concrete proof that she had any ability at all other than the sensor readings. You and I both know those are not always accurate as they aren't even admissible as evidence in court."

"I— you're right, of course," she faltered, her hands clenched in her lap. "Perhaps I was just so fixated on wanting to believe that she had an ability."

"There's no shame in that," he consoled. "From what I hear, she is quite a remarkable young lady, ability or no."

Dr. Asami raised an eyebrow at this comment and Lory feared he may have said too much. A tiny smirk flitted across her face for just a second before it disappeared.

"So he's talked about her," she mused aloud. "Either he's not as cold and heartless as everyone says or she's managed to do the impossible."

"He was required to give routine reports to me about their appointments," he said carefully, betraying nothing. "You spend enough time around him and you begin to catch on to the extremely subtle praise he weaves into his sentences."

Dr. Asami hummed flatly in response and Lory breathed a silent sigh of relief. Hopefully he managed to adequately derail her train of thought. The last thing he needed was to imply that Ren had more than a professional interest in her charge. He felt oddly thankful for the younger man's unnaturally stoic demeanor; it made explaining his strange behavior much easier.

"Well, I'll admit that I'm not envious of your position right now. The last thing I'd want to do is have to make your decision," he shrugged nonchalantly. "But, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to have my top Inquisitor back on his regular schedule. Things have gotten rather backed up around here without him."

"You were free to withdraw him from this arrangement at any time," she said with mild indignation. "Your authority ranks above mine."

"I'm aware of that, Doctor," Lory said with a grim smile. "But I do not take my authority lightly, nor do I use it indiscriminately when proper manners will suffice."

"I'm thankful for your accommodation and I will agree to release Inquisitor Tsuruga," she conceded, though somewhat begrudgingly. "Hopefully your department will be back at full efficiency soon."

"I appreciate it, Doctor. And I hope you'll find a way to help Miss Mogami regardless of her ability status. Though, I am very apologetic as to how this all came to an end."

"It's quite alright. All of us knew what could potentially happen when we agreed to this," the doctor waved a dismissive hand.

Their meeting ended there with the usual pleasantries and farewells. Lory returned to his office shortly thereafter and immediately requested for Yukihito to join him. The younger man arrived in short order, readjusting his hair around his glasses as he walked, indicating that he must have rushed to get there.

"Dr. Asami has decided to release Ren from the treatment plan for Miss Mogami," he said once Yukihito was seated before his desk. "We just finished meeting regarding what happened the other day so I wanted you to be aware of the schedule change once he is back from leave."

"Thank you for keeping me informed, sir," the other man replied. "I suppose I'll have to deal with his not-so-subtle brooding for a bit longer then."

Lory raised a curious eyebrow, "Brooding?"

"You can tell when he's had some sort of difficulty with the young woman," Yukihito explained. "He gets silent and contemplative when he's not busy working. Well, more so than usual, that is."

An amused smile tugged at the Chief Inquisitor's lips, "Well, that's the perfect segue to the second part of this conversation."

"Sir?"

"If he tries to get in contact with her, or see her, I don't want you to stop him," he said plainly.

"I didn't know your responsibilities included matchmaking, sir," the attendant joked, looking at the Chief in bewilderment.

"They don't," Lory assured. "But those two have something that they need to sort out on their own time. I'm only asking that you allow him the flexibility to do that."

"I am relieved to hear that we are in agreement about that," Yukihito confessed.

"Oh?"

"Yes, he's different around her. More human, for lack of a better term," he reasoned. "I often wonder if it's because she's one of the few people who actually treats him as such."

"So you've noticed as well," the Chief said, sounding pleased.

"It would be hard not to notice when you're around him every day," the younger man shrugged. "Makes it easier to spot when he's not himself."

"You're not going to try and keep them apart?" Lory asked, to clarify.

"Why would I?" the man looked confused by the question.

"Even though you report to me, you're appointed directly by the Assembly," he reasoned. "I figured you'd defer to them in this case."

"The Assembly only knows what I see fit to tell them." Yukihito said firmly. "As far as I'm concerned, this isn't something they need to be bothered with."

"Well then, I appreciate your help with this matter," Lory smiled.

"More than happy to do it, sir," the man smiled in return. "I try not to get too involved, but there's just something about the two of them. I get the feeling they need each other."

"You're probably right about that," Chief Takarada assured.

"And, to be quite honest, the entertainment value I get from being able to tease him mercilessly about this is a huge bonus," his smile turned into a sly grin.

Lory let out a surprised laugh and shook his head, "I'm surprised to say that the Assembly did well in assigning you. You're a perfect match for that kid."

* * *

Kyoko wondered if she should hide snacks and a cushion somewhere nearby considering how often she found herself sitting in her tree. Yes, it was essentially _her_ tree by this point. They had formed an intimate bond between plant and human that could never be torn asunder. She would have to make note of the date when she first started coming to it so they could celebrate their anniversary next year.

Today, she had her back resting against the trunk while one leg stretched out along the branch and the other hung off the side, dangling her slip-on shoe from her toes as it swung back and forth. Her head lolled back against the ragged bark and her eyes were closed. To the random passerby, she appeared to be taking a rather uncomfortable nap. In reality, she had taken a trip to her memory archives.

She sat near the largest shrub by the pond and perused the variety of flowers that were closest to the ground. Running her fingers along the petals, she felt the twinges of emotion from each one. As she brushed past three flowers in particular, the sensation was noticeably stronger than the others. Kyoko plucked them off and placed them carefully in one hand before scooting on her knees to the edge of the pond.

Holding a daisy with bright white petals over the surface, she let the liquid from the flower drop into the water below. The memory slowly faded into view and she wondered at first if she had done something wrong. She could barely make out basic shapes, but assumed that one of the blobs of color was most likely a person, judging by the darker areas on the blob where the eyes and mouth would be. Other than that, everything was mottled and fuzzy. Then, the flesh-toned blob began to speak.

"Don't let anyone tell you what you can or can't be, Kyoko," the muffled male voice said as she strained to make out the words. "I want you to grow up and be strong enough to do or be whatever you want. And, if you ever feel like you don't believe in yourself, I'll always believe in you. Remember that for me, alright Princess?"

Kyoko wiped at the moisture forming at the corners of her eyes with one hand before swishing it through the water, stopping the memory from replaying. It must have been one from when she was an infant. That certainly would explain the quality. Despite that, she knew the person talking to her was her father. He was the only one who called her 'princess' when she was younger. According to him, it was because of the fact that she always loved when he read her fairytales, even when she was just a baby.

She gently placed the daisy on the ground beside her and pulled the next flower from her other hand, a yellow gladiolus. Shaking it gently over the pond, she watched the new memory materialize before her. Tiny hands resting on the surface of a table clumsily held several playing cards. The view panned up and she saw her father sitting across from her, his dark hair disheveled as always and his glasses perched crookedly on his nose. He smiled knowingly at her as he picked a card up from where it sat on the table before him and placed it on the stack between them.

"Looks like I win again, Princess," he said with a chuckle.

"Not fair, Daddy," Kyoko's much younger voice said, the pout clearly audible in her words. "I saw your cards and you _still_ won! How'd you do that?"

"Ah, that's the secret, little one," he chided her playfully. "It doesn't matter if your opponent can see you're at a disadvantage so long as you play your cards wisely."

Toddler Kyoko huffed and put her cards down on the table. The memory ended there and she smiled fondly.

Even though things ended so terribly for her parents, she was glad she at least had some pleasant memories. It was a shame that it took her mother's revelation for her to finally want to recall them. After trying for years to forget him, she realized that remembering was actually far less painful than she assumed.

The last flower in her hand was a forget-me-not and she shook her head at the irony. Her next memory started with a view of a wooden rectangular box lined in black velvet that held polished stones of various shapes, sizes and colors. Little fingers reached out and gently skimmed over the surfaces of the stones.

"Tell me their names again," Kyoko's childlike voice demanded.

A larger hand appeared from the periphery and pointed with a long finger at the milky green stone on the far left.

"That one is a type of jade called nephrite," her father said.

He then pointed to the stone that looked like a chunk of smooth, black glass, "This is obsidian. It's made from volcano lava. Remember the volcano in that book we read the other day?"

"Yeah," tiny Kyoko nodded enthusiastically and looked up at her father, who smiled down at her. "There was that big hill and it went BOOM!"

Her hands waved in front of her face for effect as she spoke.

"That's right," he agreed before turning her attention back to the box. "Now, where were we? Ah, yes, you already know the name of this one, Princess. It's your favorite, after all."

"Water suh-fire!" she mispronounced proudly, pointing to the blue-violet stone.

"Yes, water sapphire," he corrected her gently. "Do you remember it's actual name?"

"I—I… I don't remember," little Kyoko gave up.

"It's iolite," he reminded her. "Remember what I told you it was used for?"

"To find the sun!" she shouted happily and he laughed at her enthusiasm.

"Very good," her father congratulated her. "That's absolutely right. Explorers used to use it to find the direction of the sun on cloudy days."

Kyoko giggled at her younger self as she saw her and her father go over every stone in the box. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them while she watched the memory play all the way to the end. Once it was over, she stood up and made her way to leave. The flowers she discarded near the water's edge had long since dissipated into oblivion, their replacements sitting proudly in their respective places on the shrub.

She had avoided walking anywhere near the wall when she first entered her mind. It reminded her of things she wanted to ignore for the time being. However, as she left her memory archives, she found herself wandering along the side where she and Ren entered for the first time. Looking straight ahead, she did her best to not stare at it until she spotted something in the corner of her vision that made her stop in her tracks.

Turning to look at the wall, she saw long scratches all over the surface that looked to have been made by a rock of some sort. Walking closer, she realized the scratches were in the shapes of letters. They appeared to have been written in a hurry as they were crooked and misaligned. Her eyes widened as she deciphered the letters written before her.

 _'If you want to know why, find me in the library.'_

Kyoko was more than just angry. She was absolutely _wrathful_ once she realized the full meaning of what those words meant. He had been inside her mind without her permission and he defaced her wall just so he could get a message to her. Her blood boiled at his impertinence.

How _dare_ he?!

Immediately leaving her mindscape, she jumped down from her seat in the tree. It was early evening now and the sky was darkening by the minute. Chances were good that he would be in the library at that time and she knew just where to find him. Making up her mind to look for him, she tugged her purse down from where she placed it in the nook of two branches and stormed off towards the library. If he was so determined to see her again so soon, then she would be happy to oblige him. Perhaps he would change his mind once he realized her only intention was to verbally eviscerate him and leave him for the vultures to find.

She stomped loudly up the stairs to the third floor, pointedly ignoring the irritated and incredulous stares of the other library patrons as she went. Sneaking up on him was never the plan. No, she wanted him to hear her coming. When she reached the top of the stairs, she was breathing a bit heavier than normal; whether it was due to her rage or the fact that she climbed two flights of stairs at twice her normal pace was not clear.

Ren was sitting casually at one of the tables on the far end of the room reading a magazine, looking completely unperturbed. Kyoko wanted to scream in frustration, and nearly did before she remembered she was in a library. When she was halfway across the room, he finally looked up and met her eyes. Raising an eyebrow, he moved his head ever-so-slightly to one side to point towards the table behind him.

She halted and stared at him like he had suddenly grown two heads. He was the one who called her here and now he had the nerve to tell her not to sit with him? A low growl escaped her mouth before she could stop it. She was a heartbeat away from marching over to him and grabbing him by the collar of his shirt when her thoughts were entirely dislodged by the sound of his voice in her head.

 _"This is a public place. We can't sit near each other or everyone will be able to figure out what we're doing,"_ his voice echoed and she winced a little at how loud it was. _"Sit at the other table and I'll meet you in your mind and explain everything."_

 _"Please,"_ he added, with a hint of desperation.

Kyoko walked to one of the nearby shelves and pulled a random book before begrudgingly sitting at the table behind Ren. She opened it and flipped through a few pages before finding one full of text that she could pretend to concentrate on before she entered her mind again. He was standing near one of the garden fountains when she arrived, looking around anxiously for any sign of her. She deliberately slowed down and took her time to walk over to him.

"You could at least warn someone before you decide to broadcast directly into their brain," she said bitterly with a frown once she made her way to him. "Or, you know, do anything else in their minds without their consent, for that matter."

"I usually don't communicate with anyone other than my family like that as it makes my mind less secure. But, I didn't want to risk announcing that out loud," he clarified as if it were completely logical. "Sorry if it was too intense but, I figured I had already committed one infraction and adding another to the list seemed negligible at the point."

"Whatever, just tell me why you're here," she said with an irritated huff and a roll of her eyes

Slowly, he lowered himself to sit on the short, stone wall surrounding the fountain and looked up at her. The action confused her at first until she realized he was literally giving her the high ground. Instead of towering over her like he normally would, he was letting her talk down to him. A subtle move, but she appreciated the sentiment despite herself. She stood in front of him with her arms crossed and waited.

"First, I need to apologize for my behavior the other day," he began. "What I did was unprofessional and cowardly. I never should have decided something like that on my own when I knew full well it would hurt you."

She bit back a retort and let him continue.

"I… learned something that would change my role in helping you solve your problem and I was scared."

"Scared?" she prompted.

"I found out that I was much more directly involved than I thought and it meant sharing things with you that I would prefer not to. So, I decided to not say anything and get as far away from you as possible," Ren admitted sheepishly. "I was being selfish and I didn't understand how much my decision would affect you."

"You got that right," she grumbled, dropping her arms and turning slightly away from him.

He reached out and awkwardly grabbed on to her hands with both of his. Kyoko whipped her head back around to look at him. His eyes were plaintive and he held on to her as if he were afraid she was going to run away. She turned back to face him.

"Kyoko, I am very sorry for what I did. I should have explained to you what I found out so we could discuss it and decide together what to do because this affects both of us. Especially now that I know you are in much more danger than either of us thought," he swallowed before he continued. "You're not safe here, Kyoko; for a number of reasons that I'd like the chance to explain. You don't have to forgive me or even talk to me again once I'm done. I only ask that you hear me out."

Slowly, she released her hands from his, noticing the look of dismay that flitted across his face when she did. Stepping to one side, she turned her back to the fountain and lowered her self onto the wall beside him with a heavy sigh. Apparently, one lengthy exposition for the day was not enough. But, the fact that she was in a dangerous situation definitely gave things a sense of urgency. She sighed again, pushing her bottom lip out with the exhale to blow upward into her bangs. Bracing her hands against her knees, she turned to look at him with the calmest expression she could muster.

"Alright, I'm listening."

* * *

 **I HOPE YOU REMEMBERED TO STAY HYDRATED THROUGH THIS LENGTHY CHAPTER: this was a long chapter to both write and proofread. If there are any errors, I apologize in advance. After several re-readings, I decided it was good enough to post. Anyway, thanks to _EVERYONE_ who wrote a review for the last chapter. You are all super amazing and I adore each and every one of you. The next chapter is going to be crazytown to write but, so far, I think I'm up to the challenge.**

 **I'll see you all here again at the usual time!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	14. Recognition

**CHAPTER 13: RECOGNITION**

The look of pure gratitude and relief on Ren's face when she agreed was the first in a new collection of expressions Kyoko had yet to witness. The rare smiles and even rarer laughs were already a treat when she happened to run across them but, _this_? This was an expression that, for all of it's positivity and light, seemed to carry an ominous and heavy weight behind it. As much as the untold story behind it intrigued her, she could not help but feel apprehensive.

"It might be easier if I showed you instead," he suggested. "That is, if you are up to a small field trip."

"Where will we be going?"

"Physically? We'll be staying right here," he hinted cryptically. "But, I think it's time to level the playing field."

"So where—"

Ren promptly got up from his seat near the fountain and began to walk away. Stopping a few paces away, he turned back to look at her. She had not yet moved and her brows were drawn closely together in confusion.

"We've spent quite enough time in this place," he said, looking around him before his eyes rested on her again. "Would you like to see someone else's mind for a change?"

Kyoko's eyes widened in surprise and she nodded.

"Let's go then, shall we?" he smiled at her eager reply.

She all but jumped from her seat and began to follow closely behind him. He led her to a door of sturdy, polished mahogany that seemed to be arbitrarily placed in the middle of a tall hedge. Reaching down to turn the tarnished copper knob he motioned for her to enter ahead of him. Once they were both inside, they walked down a lengthy corridor with walls the color of a forest at dusk. Windows appeared at regular intervals, framed by sweeping drapes of rich, golden damask.

Through the windows, Kyoko could see a number of outdoor scenes from a variety of locations. One window showed the blustery conditions from the summit view of a mountain range, complete with grey and white peaks in the distance and snow blowing across the scene like dust clouds. Another had a white, sandy beach lined with palm trees stretching upward in lazy arcs while small birds picked at the sand for whatever treasures they could find. Her favorite was the view of a cove from a grassy cliff; tiny houses in reds, blues and greys peeked from behind the trees that surrounded the serene bay.

"Is this the hallway you use to enter your own mind?" she asked finally, realizing she probably already knew the answer, but wanted confirmation.

"It's one of them," he said nonchalantly.

"As in, you have more than one?" she asked in astonishment. "How is that even possible?"

"Remember when I explained that your personal entry should be yours alone for safety reasons?"

"Yes," she affirmed.

"This is constructed to function more like a guest entry. It allows me to control who is allowed to enter my mind and how much they can access," he elaborated. "The one we are using now is a bit more elaborate than what I typically use which is more utilitarian in function and looks."

"So, I get the VIP pass?" she asked with a lopsided smile.

"In a manner of speaking, yes," he nodded, lips curling in mild amusement.

When they reached the end of the hallway, both took a deep, anxious breath before Ren opened the door before them. Light streamed in from the other side, causing them to squint when they stepped through. While Kyoko looked around his mindscape in awe, he managed to spot his younger self lurking agitatedly off to one side, partially obscured by a tree. Raising a finger to his lips, Ren shook his head at the boy and pointed in the direction of his memory archives. The boy seemed to understand what he meant by the gesture and quickly left before their guest laid eyes on him.

"While I could probably stand here all day and gawk at this place, I believe you have something I need to see?" she prompted.

"Yes. It will be a bit of a walk but it shouldn't take too long," he said as he started walking off in one direction.

She followed him down paved city streets, surrounded by towering buildings that abruptly transitioned to a dirt road surrounded by dense forests on either side. They were silent during the walk, Kyoko content to take in the various sights in his mind as they went. The road then changed to gravel and back to paved once they approached a house she somewhat recognized. Ren's pace slowed and she nearly walked right past him when he stopped at the walkway leading to the front door.

"When I was younger, my parents had a vacation home in Keypointe and we would stay there each year, typically during the summer. Usually it was for a couple of months but, sometimes, we were only here for a few weeks, depending on my parents' schedules," Ren explained.

"This was _your_ house? I remember it was a ways down the road from mine but I never knew anyone lived there," she recalled. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"It seemed irrelevant at the time."

"And now it's not?"

"You'll see," came his enigmatic reply.

Inside the house, they walked no further than the entryway. Kyoko reigned in her desire to poke around the rest of the place. She did, however, manage to get a glimpse of the living room and admired the well-coordinated furnishings within before her attention was redirected to the closet door before them. Ren fumbled around in his pocket before removing something and holding it up for her to see. It was the key they found in the dried pond in her mind.

"Notice anything wrong with this?" he asked innocently.

She looked at the key itself, her lips pursed tightly in thought and her brow wrinkled. Several seconds passed before she finally gave up and shook her head.

"It looks like the same key we found," she said with a shrug.

"That's because it is," he confirmed.

"Okay…" she remained puzzled, hoping this would eventually lead somewhere.

"This should not exist anywhere else but inside your mind and yet it's here. Whole and perfectly functional."

"Why?"

"Because of this door, apparently," he tilted his head, nodding it towards the door. "Watch."

To demonstrate, he first jiggled the knob to show that it was previously locked. Then, he pushed the key firmly into the lock on the doorknob and turned. The lock disengaged with a click and the knob turned, revealing the mostly empty closet. Kyoko looked curiously into the closet, careful to not to block the lighting from the hall that dimly illuminated the space. She watched Ren pull the single book from the shelf and slowly open it to show her the object contained in the compartment within.

"The key led me here and I found this," he offered the opened book to her.

She gasped and pulled the stone from its resting place. The shape looked similar to one she had recently seen. Holding it up in the light, she determined that it was, in fact, the very same stone.

"Th-this is iolite," she choked out.

"I never pegged you has someone with categorial knowledge of geology," he sounded oddly impressed.

"No," she shook her head once. "This stone is an exact replica of the one from my father's collection. I just saw it in my memories today."

"You willingly went looking for memories of your father?" he asked, astonished.

"I had an interesting conversation with my mother this morning." _Interesting_ was an understatement, but she digressed. "She explained the true reason behind my father's exit from our lives."

"That must have been rather intense, I imagine," he said with a sympathetic grimace. "I apologize for making you go through so much in one day by bringing you here."

"It's fine," she promised flatly, one corner of her mouth pressed inward, dimpling her cheek. "Besides, this will probably be the last thing I get to do with you before they kick me out of here for not having an ability."

"What makes you say that?" his eyebrow arched high over one eye.

"Part of the story my mother shared with me included the results of my pre-ability assessment as a child. I was given a less than one percent chance of developing an ability," she recounted.

"That does not necessarily preclude you from having no ability at all," he frowned. "Just because the percentage is low, doesn't mean it's impossible. Just highly improbable."

"Be that as it may, it still means I have an overwhelmingly larger chance of _not_ having an ability. Since I have come this far without having an Awakening, I'm fairly certain that I'm not in the minority," Kyoko lamented.

"Fortunately—or not, depending on how you look at it—that's not true at all," he countered. "You, Kyoko Mogami, definitely have an ability. I've seen it with my own eyes."

"Is this where you give me some horribly cliched compliment like 'your determination is what makes you special' or something along those lines?" she asked him, folding her arms with a cynical eye-roll.

"No, I'm completely serious," he deadpanned. "You have a legitimate ability."

"What is it then?" she waved an impatient hand for him to continue.

"Well, the difficult part is that I'm not entirely sure—" he trailed off.

She rolled her eyes again and gave him an irritated sigh.

"But, I believe it to be some sort of temporal manipulation," Ren finished.

"Temporal—," she repeated slowly, letting it mull around her brain until it clicked into place. "You mean I can alter time?!"

"I wouldn't be surprised if you could," he agreed. "The only thing I saw was you stopping time on the day we had our last appointment. It happened right before you fainted."

Kyoko stared at him, her jaw slack and eyes widening beyond the irises, "You actually saw me freeze time? How?"

"I don't know myself," he admitted. "By all reckoning, it should have affected me as well and I would have been none the wiser. But, all it did was slow me down somewhat."

She looked down at the stone she still held in her hand, then back up at Ren. A broad smile formed on her lips and her eyes crinkled happily.

"Then, we need to speed up this expedition and figure out why my things are showing up in your mind already!" she shouted ecstatically. "Let's get a move on so I can start learning how to properly use my ability."

"There is one more thing I need to show you first, but I want you to think carefully about whether or not you want to uncover your full ability at this juncture," he held up a hand, looking down at her with a slightly worried expression.

"Why wouldn't I?!" her smile disappeared.

"The ability to influence time has never been properly observed or documented before. Anyone who openly admitted being able to do so was never confirmed because Academy scientists could not reliably corroborate the existence of their ability. Similarly, those who were rumored among the public to have those abilities often went into hiding or defected to countries with less aggressive Academies, or none at all," Ren explained calmly.

"So, if the Academy finds out about me—" she trailed off.

"You'll be in a worse situation than the one in which you currently find yourself," he finished for her. "You are something they haven't seen before and they'll be extremely curious to learn more about you."

Kyoko fiddled with the stone she still held, running her fingers along the uneven edges and smoothing her thumb over the wide, flat surfaces. The seriousness in Ren's tone made it clear that this was not a decision to be made lightly or hastily. He definitely seemed to imply that she would be at the mercy of the Academy and, most likely, subjected to multiple, rigorous tests. That sounded like a situation she would rather avoid.

"That being said," he added. "I will fully support whatever you decide. My only condition was that you were first made aware of the possible repercussions."

"Thank you," she said earnestly. "Now, what else was it you wanted to show me?"

"I thought you might be wondering how I knew to come here and use the key," he suggested.

"You're right! I knew something about this didn't quite add up," she frowned. "How _did_ you know?"

"I went about this in the reverse order of actual events, but I thought it might be easier to understand this way. We'll have to backtrack a bit to where we first entered, if you don't mind."

"Lead the way," she said, securing the stone in her pocket.

Chewing absently at her nails during the walk back, Kyoko pondered her current situation. She would be lying if she admitted to being anything other than delighted to find out she had an ability. The fact that it was almost mythical in its uniqueness made it even more difficult to ignore.

And then there was Ren. How exactly did he fit into everything? Sure, he showed that her key opened a door in his mind that held a stone from her childhood memories. But, that only served to raise more questions than it answered. Despite spending his summers in Keypointe, he made no indication that he remembered her and she definitely did not remember him. What was their connection other than being in the same place at some point in their lives? Kyoko decided to hold off on any more contemplating until she got the full story from Ren. It would be impossible to try completing the equation while variables were still missing.

When they arrived at his memory archives, she admired the tall windows on the cream-colored building and their surrounding shutters of moss green that matched the nearby foliage. Walking through the entrance just below the wrought iron balcony of the second floor, they entered the spacious library of his memories. The neatly catalogued books sitting primly on their shelves was an impressive sight and she found it fitting, based on what she had learned about him thus far.

"I can see why my archives were so much more interesting to you. This is almost boring by comparison," she teased good-naturedly.

"Telepaths are, typically, much more organized people, mentally," he offered in agreement. "Most of us tend to have very structured memory archives."

She hummed and continued to look around, following him as he made his way over to an older set of shelves. The majority of the books there appeared to have been neglected for quite some time, as evidenced by the layer of dust on them. However, a couple rows looked recently disturbed. The spines of the books had the outlines of hands and fingers where the dust had been cleared away.

"When I first noticed that I still had your key, I had a… bit of an argument with myself as to why it would be here in the first place," Ren said, almost stiffly. "It made no sense as I had no memory of any connection with you. Every summer I spent in Keypointe, I was usually alone except for the few activities I did with my parents. I came to my archives to prove that and looked up the memories from that summer ten years ago."

Kyoko nodded when he paused, encouraging him to continue. He pulled one of the partially dusty books from the shelf and held it out to her. Hesitantly, she reached out and took it from him, wondering why he was trusting her with his memories. Assuming he meant for her to actually open it, she braced her fingers against the cover, maneuvering her thumb between the pages to open it at a random spot. She inhaled sharply at what she saw. After flipping through a number of pages, she looked up at him with a mixture of shock and confusion.

Ren gestured to the other books like it on the shelves with a solemn nod, "All of these were exactly like that one. Completely blank inside."

"How?" she breathed, barely getting the word out.

"It would seem that I, too, am missing memories from that summer. Just the same as you are," he concluded.

Gently closing the book, she gave it back to him with shaking hands. He returned it to its designated shelf and turned to find her sitting on one of the nearby chairs. Selecting another seat, he silently sat down across from her. She ran her hands along the armrests on either side of her in an almost obsessive petting motion as if it would help organize her thoughts.

"So we're both victims of some sort of residual memory loss from the Keypointe Incident then, right? That has to be what it is," she fiercely pounded a fist into chair's soft upholstering. "That was the big event to happen that summer so it must be! We just have to find whoever's responsible and get our memories back."

Kyoko then laughed weakly at the absurdity of what she had said, her shoulders slumped as she sunk deeper into the chair. Ren stared at her blankly, wondering where to begin.

"Though, that still doesn't explain why you're the only one who can use a key that was created in _my_ mind. What, exactly, is our connection, anyway?"

She noticed Ren's fingers idly drumming against each other as he sat, hunched over himself with his elbows on his knees. He looked worried about something. To be more accurate, he looked downright _terrified_ of the words that were going to come out of his mouth. He stared, like he was lost, at nothing in particular and his lips pressed tightly against each other into an impossibly thin line. Pushing her hands down into the cushioning, she leaned forward and looked at him sternly.

"Okay, out with it already!" she demanded.

"Out with what?" he asked, breaking from his reverie.

"You look like you're about to explode from the sheer force of whatever you're about to say so, come on, let's have it!" Kyoko encouraged.

His fidgeting hands stopped in an instant and hung limply from the wrist. Lowering his eyes to focus somewhere on the floor, he finally spoke.

"Roughly ten years ago, I discovered I had telepathic abilities," he began, his voice suddenly hoarse. "Because it was a catastrophic Awakening, I don't remember all the details of how it happened. But I do know it happened during the summer… while I was in Keypointe."

Were anyone to listen closely enough, they would hear the sound in Kyoko's head as the rapidly turning gears contained within ground to a screeching halt.

"Y-you mean…" her voice failed her and the the remainder of the question went unasked, but he knew what she meant all the same.

"Yes, I'm responsible for the Keypointe Incident," he admitted quietly.

A number of things suddenly made a lot more sense; Ren's awkwardness the day they found out her memories were missing from that time period and his seemingly irrational choice to stop helping her and refusal to offer any explanation as to why. His Awakening caused the largest amount of collateral damage in history—though no loss of lives, thankfully—and people were still trying to find him. Now she understood why he was so sympathetic to her situation. It was the very same fate he was trying to avoid.

"What happened?" she asked, already knowledgeable of the incident itself, but curious to learn more about the other side of the story.

"As I said, I don't remember all of it," he repeated. "What I can remember starts almost like a dream where you're thrown in the middle of a scene with no context as to how you got there. I was walking home from somewhere and saw people waking up like they fell asleep right where they stood. There was this… noise in my head as if I could hear their confusion. All of them. It was the loudest thing I'd ever heard in my life."

Ren could recall the sensation distinctly, whether he wanted to or not. As he wandered confusedly through the town that day, the unbearable din in his own mind drove him nearly to the point of madness. He desperately clawed a finger into each ear, as deep as it would go, to try to block out the sound. It did nothing to quiet the horrendous noise. At some point, he must have started crying from way it throbbed painfully through his head. However, as he could barely hear his own shoes scraping against the ground, the shuddering sobs that came from his lips went unnoticed, save for the feeling of his chest heaving with each faltering breath.

"That sounds terrifying," she said, her voice shaking slightly.

"It was," he agreed. "By the time I got to my house I either figured out how to control it or the stress of being able to access everyone's thoughts at once caused my mind to shut down. My parents came home hours later to find me sitting in the same hallway where I showed you that closet. I had a better idea of what happened and what I had done by then."

"You had go through all of that _alone_?!" she gasped, her hand covered her mouth in a mix of shock and horror and her eyes began to burn with the promise of tears.

He nodded slowly. Once he reached his house, he stumbled up the front path in a daze, finally numbed to the cacophony in his own mind and completely ignorant of the half-dried tracks of tears on his cheeks. An unlit house greeted him when he opened the door and he remembered his parents had left town that morning. Part of him was relieved that they were not present to fall victim to what he had done but, the other part was distraught and needed the comfort that only his mother and father could provide. He only made it as far as the hallway leading from the front door before he slid to the ground, folding in on himself with intermittent whimpers and sniffles.

"My father had to go back home for an Assembly meeting and my mother went with him," Ren explained, his voice thick with emotion. "While I sat in that hallway, I decided that I didn't want my ability and vowed to never use it again. I was actually able to keep that promise for a few years."

"You sealed your own ability away? How did you manage that?" Kyoko asked in awe, blinking the sympathetic tears from her eyes.

"I honestly wish I could explain it," he confessed, running a hand through his hair. "Other than to say that I deliberately focused on never using it and kept it hidden. There were the few times I slipped but, I was mostly successful."

"Well, there's something to be said about sheer willpower, I guess," she said offhandedly, causing him let out a short, rueful chuckle.

"Anyway, we managed to leave town before they quarantined the area," he continued. "Since we were only part-time residents of the area, we managed to slip through the cracks when they mandated that everyone report to city hall for examination."

"But, how did you end up _here_ of all places. After something like that, I wouldn't want to be anywhere near an Academy, much less working for one," Kyoko grimaced at the mere thought.

"That was actually at the suggestion of a family friend. He convinced me that I was better off hiding in plain sight. So, I changed my name, appearance and official identification documents and registered here to work under him as an Inquisitor."

"That's… impressively brilliant," she said, having taken a moment to truly consider the advantages of such a situation.

"And lucky," he added. "I don't know what I would have done if that opportunity was not offered to me. I wasn't exactly the most productive member of society at the time. What happened in Keypointe negatively affected me, to a large extent. I never really recovered from that."

Kyoko made a sympathetic noise, "It wasn't your fault. Not really. It's not like you could've controlled it in any way. That's just how Awakenings work."

"Believe me, you're not the first person to tell me that. I suppose I could never believe it. Not after witnessing the fallout of my own Awakening in person."

The resignation and remorse in his voice was palpable and her heart broke for him. Unfortunately, he was sitting too far from her to offer any sort of comfort. She wanted to take his hand, squeeze his shoulders, do _something_ to let him know he wasn't suffering alone. He had entrusted her with a weapons-grade secret and all she could do was gape at him like a fish. It made her feel useless. She did not like that feeling.

"For what it's worth, I appreciate you sharing your secret with me. I get it now. Why you were so afraid of telling me the truth. To be honest, I feel a little guilty that I've forced your hand," she shifted nervously in her chair.

"Don't be," he assured her gently. "I had to tell you because this involves both of us now."

"So, you think our missing memories are as a result of your Awakening back then? I guess that would connect us in some way, but I feel like there's more to it than that."

"Your guess is as good as mine at this point." Ren shook his head somberly. "I can only give you my side of the story and hope we'll find out the rest when we recover your memories and ability."

"But you're waiting on _me_ to decide when and how I want to do that," she reminded him pointedly.

"Precisely."

A long, exhausted breath left her, but she remained silent.

"I know it's a lot to absorb at once and you don't have to make the decision right this minute," he consoled. "If you'd like, you can ask me any questions you might have instead. In the interest of time, I gave you the abridged version of the story so, if there's any details you want to know or would find helpful, I'll gladly tell you."

By this point, Kyoko was full of nothing _but_ questions as she watched him regard her patiently. This entire day was full of learning far more than she ever anticipated. She was so inundated with everything that had been explained to her, it surprised her that she could still form coherent sentences, much less ask a question that was meaningful in any way. Perhaps that would account for the fact that her errant thoughts fixated on to one random element of his story. Before she could stop herself, the question came out of her mouth.

"You said you changed your appearance when you came here," she began hesitantly. "What did you look like before?"

"Ah, well, that is easily answered I think," he looked oddly relieved, seemingly expecting a much tougher question.

"It is?" she asked, her head tilted to one side. Was he about to pull out a family photo album?

"I know you're still in here, you can come out now," Ren raised his voice to call on an unseen presence.

Kyoko looked around in confusion, trying to figure out who he was talking to. She assumed they were alone in his mindscape. The shuffling of feet prompted her to crane her neck around the back of the chair and look towards a doorway at the far end of the room. A boy, in his early teens, with a mop of shaggy, golden hair and green eyes walked timidly into the room. She stood to get a better look and properly greet him when his eyes met hers and opened wide. A sudden grin nearly split his face in half and he broke into a run, heading straight for her.

Bracing for the inevitable impact, she spared a quick glance at Ren out of the corner of her eye and saw him staring in disbelief at the entire scene. She grunted at the force of the boy's body colliding with hers. He was only a few inches taller than her, she noticed, as he wrapped his arms tightly about her waist. The sheer exuberance of his grin was nearly overwhelming once she witnessed it up close but she found she was unable to look away.

"Wh—" she was interrupted before she could even get the first word out.

When he finally spoke, his voice had the awkward tenor of a teen still in the throes of puberty, but it sounded awfully familiar.

"I'm Kuon Hizuri," he excitedly introduced himself. "And I can't believe I get to see you again after all these years, Kyoko. I really missed you!"

* * *

 **FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO THOUGHT EVERYTHING WOULD BE COVERED IN ONE CHAPTER, I'M SORRY: We still have a loooong way to go until all of this gets sorted out. There is a lot that needs to be covered (or uncovered, as the case may be). However, we're off to a decent start, right? Maybe? I can't believe I actually thought this would be a fairly short story when I started this. Boy, was I ten kinds of wrong on that.**

 **Anyway, thanks to everyone for the reviews and encouragement. You all make me smile every time I read your input. Every single one of you is amazing and I'm so happy to have your support. See you all here again same time next week!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	15. Recovery

**CHAPTER 14 - RECOVERY**

Kyoko sat across from the two of them, drowning in her own bewilderment. Her eyes moved slowly between their faces with each blink, taking in their identical facial features. Despite the difference in hair and eye color, she could clearly see they were the same person. Well, the same person at different ages, rather.

Once she got over the initial shock of being accosted by a teenaged boy she did not know, a round of reintroductions was in order. They all sat down and Ren explained that he was born in Astetra as the only child of Juliena and Kuu Hizuri. Kuon was an energetic child who enjoyed the outdoors and never met an animal he could not befriend. However, as he explained earlier, after the Keypointe Incident, Kuon Hizuri ceased to be when he became Ren and his story started anew.

"So, you and you are the same person?" she asked, pointing to each one of them as if saying it aloud would help solidify the concept in her mind.

"Basically, yep," the younger of the two chirped happily, the grin from earlier still plastered on his face.

The elder one nodded once in agreement.

"You make it sound like it's completely normal," she said with a dubious snort. "What caused this?"

"Well, what happened was—" they began in unison before turning to each other.

"You go ahead," they both insisted to the other.

"No, no, after you," Kuon quickly amended before Ren could protest.

"Fine," Ren continued, looking back at Kyoko. "Since I never used, or explored, my ability after Keypointe, I'm not entirely sure how long he's been in here. But, after coming to this Academy and becoming 'Ren,' I found him sitting in my memory archives after learning how to enter my own mind. As far as I can tell, he appears to have been created out of my desire to separate who I was from who I currently am now. For whatever reason, he's always been purposely vague about how he was created when I've asked him, so I eventually left it alone."

He looked over at his younger self and saw him shrug in response.

"My suspicion is that he doesn't even know how it happened," Ren added, narrowing his eyes at his counterpart.

Kyoko looked at Kuon, "Is he correct?"

"Eh, close enough," Kuon nodded his head from side to side.

"That still fails to explain why you know me and he doesn't," Kyoko frowned.

"Doesn't it?" Kuon asked innocently. "You are a part of the life he—well, we—left behind."

"So you know who we are to each other?" she asked and he nodded.

"Does that mean you also know why his memories are missing?" Kyoko quickly piled the next question on top of the previous.

He hesitated, but nodded again.

"Do you know why _my_ memories are missing?" she pressed further.

This time, he looked discomfited by the question, his eyes shifted nervously and his mouth closed tightly on itself. Eventually, he nodded once more.

"What? Why couldn't you have just told me that from the beginning?" Ren asked with vexed incredulity.

Kuon folded his arms across his chest and carefully prepared his reply. While it was true that he knew the reason behind their current situation, it was not his purpose to tell them. That was something they needed to find out for themselves. Still, he wished he could simply reveal the truth and put an end to everything in one felled swoop. Alas, that was not a part of the bargain.

"That's not in my job description," he said lightly with an exaggerated shrug and a teasing smile. "Unfortunately for you both, I don't exist to give you the easy way out. However, I _can_ point you in the right direction."

Ren and Kyoko both looked simultaneously confused and irritated.

"Then tell us!" they demanded at the same time.

"Hey, whoa, talking at the same time is what Ren and I do. Don't take that from me," he pouted. "Anyway, you already have all the pieces you need to figure everything out. All you need to do now is discover how they fit together."

"And you're not able to tell us that, are you?" Kyoko asked, her tone suspicious.

"Much as I would like to, no. Honestly, I never expected this to happen," he said, gesturing between them. "The odds of us ever meeting again were close to zero."

"Well, that wouldn't be the first probability we've defenestrated," Ren muttered and Kyoko let out an abbreviated snort.

"Can you at least give us a hint?" she pleaded.

Kuon weighed his next words carefully before saying anything further.

"Think of it this way; one of you is a lock and the other is a key," he explained, looking at each of them in turn. "However you aren't always one or the other. Clear as mud, I know, but keep that in mind and it'll prove helpful."

Ren let out a put-upon sigh and shook his head.

"Also, you'll want to carefully choose when you both want to do this," he cautioned. "Once she recovers her memories, Kyoko's ability will most likely reveal itself. It is crucial that you are willing to accept what that might entail when you reach that point."

"I figured as much," Ren admitted. "But, thanks, I suppose, for confirming that."

"A shame, really," Kuon said, deflated. "I half-considered going with an overdramatic, booming voice for that last bit like I was reading some sort of ominous prophecy."

"How tragic," Ren deadpanned. "But I appreciate the lack of theatrics."

"Yea, well, I didn't dial it back for your sake," Kuon quipped, shooting a wink over at Kyoko.

Kyoko let out a groan that transitioned into a yawn as she idly scraped her nails back and forth along her scalp. Her capacity to think clearly was diminishing rapidly by the second and all she wanted to do was collapse in her bed and sleep for ten years. Ten hours might also be acceptable, at the very least. Either way, she had reached the point of diminishing returns.

"Great, now we're putting her to sleep. Good job, Ren," Kuon whined accusingly.

"Why are you blaming this on me?!"

"Because you're the boring one!"

"We are literally the _same_ person,"

"Well, you're the boring half then."

"I suddenly regret bringing her here."

"Oh, shut up, you both need me and you know it," Kuon stuck out his tongue in defiance.

Kyoko cleared her throat loudly after watching them banter for a few moments. Admittedly, it was enjoyable, but she needed to leave. Maybe, next time, she would figure out how to bring some popcorn with her.

"If you're quite finished fighting with yourself, I'd like leave so I can go back to my apartment," she stated pointedly. "Perhaps you can function on minimal sleep but I cannot."

"I'm so sorry about this," Ren apologized, pinching at the bridge of his nose. "Let's get you out of here."

"Bye Kyoko!" Kuon happily called out while waving energetically. "Come back and see me again soon, okay?"

They made it as far as the door when an errant thought stopped her in her tracks and Kyoko motioned for Ren to wait for her. She turned back and walked over to where Kuon stood, still sending them off with a wave. His hand stopped and slowly dropped when he noticed she was coming back to him alone. He flashed his teeth in a sly grin.

"Decided to stay with me instead, huh?" Kuon asked cheekily.

"Actually, I had another question," her eyes darted nervously back to where Ren stood at the door.

"What is it?" his head tilted to one side in query.

"You're him, aren't you?" she asked, her brow furrowed as she searched his face for anything she could recognize. "You're the other person from the drawing I hid in my room."

"Yes," he nodded once, his smile disappearing.

She fought back a groan when she remembered her mother's comment about his name rhyming with a vegetable. As ridiculous as that was, it was less important than the fact that the person standing before her was little more than a complete stranger to her. The whole time she was sitting with the two of them, it ate away at her. For all the bright smiles and cheerful answers this boy was giving them, she felt tiny daggers stabbing at her each time he spoke. This was someone who knew her when she was a child that she completely forgot. From the way he behaved she guessed they were at least friends of some sort. It was like the strangest selective amnesia and it bothered her to no end. How could he be so happy to see her knowing that she had no idea who he even was?

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I've forgotten you," her face crumpled into a sorrowful grimace. "I'm going to get the memories back. For you and for him," she pointed her chin over her shoulder at Ren.

"Don't… don't do it for us, Kyoko," Kuon said hesitantly.

"Why?" she could not understand what he meant.

"Do it for yourself," he urged with a smile. "Do it because you want to know your own truth. That's what's most important."

She nodded in understanding, giving him a timid smile before she pulled him into a brief hug. When she pulled away, he looked surprisingly shy all of a sudden. Kyoko smiled at him, taking his hand in hers and shaking it like they were being formally introduced.

"It was nice to meet you again, Kuon," she said softly.

Flustered, he stammered random syllables in response. Before he could get an actual word out, she walked away to rejoin Ren at the door and left.

"What was that all about?" Ren asked quietly.

"I told him it was nice to meet him."

"But you've already met us," he said, confused. "Twice, it seems."

"I was trying to be polite," Kyoko said simply, letting the conversation end there.

Before they went their separate ways, they agreed to meet again in two days. While Kyoko insisted that she would be fine to come back the following evening, Ren argued that she should have more time given the amount of things she learned in a such a short period. She eventually relented and accepted the additional time to mentally recuperate.

Once they were back in the library, Kyoko continued idly skimming through her book to allow Ren leave first. After flipping through a few more pages, she got up and returned the book to its home on the shelf and left as well.

* * *

Classes seemed duller than usual the next day and Kyoko was eager for them to be over from the moment she stepped into the classroom that morning. Taking notes was particularly difficult because she was completely unable to focus on the lecture. Her thoughts were in at least fifteen different places at once and none of those places were related to what the instructor was currently discussing. Had anyone asked her what she learned in class that day, she would be at a loss to tell them anything.

Luckily, her schedule was routine enough that she made it to her and Kanae's regular meeting place on time. The other young woman looked at her carefully when she approached. The dazed expression Kyoko wore was a clear indication that something was not right. Kanae frowned when Kyoko continued walking towards the apartment complex without any form of greeting, only slowing down enough so she could join her.

"You seem overwhelmed," Kanae opined once she caught up to her.

"Understatement of the decade," Kyoko muttered.

"Can you tell me about it?"

"Probably only half of it," the young woman shrugged. "The other half is not really my story to tell and, unfortunately, it would sound a bit confusing without it."

"Maybe just the general gist of it then?" Kanae coaxed.

"Well, I apologize in advance for the strange metaphor but, it's like I tried to make a sandwich the way I normally do only to be told that the lettuce and ham should be on the outside of the bread," she attempted to explain, her hands gesturing wildly as she spoke. "And, while we're at it, let's add some strawberry ice cream with chili sprinkles on top of it because _that's_ a good idea."

"Okay, first, you need to eat something soon because you're making examples with food," Kanae raised a curious eyebrow. "Secondly, it sounds like you're dealing with some emotional turmoil over a very confusing reversal of expectations."

"Yea, pretty much."

"Were you planning to consult your favorite tree on this?"

"I thought about it, but I wasn't sure if this was a tree-level problem," she shook her head, looking askance

"Oh, I think this goes _beyond_ a tree-level problem." Kanae asserted, taking Kyoko by the hand. "Come with me, I believe I know just the thing you need."

The pair walked towards the hospital and Kanae led them to a floor Kyoko had never visited before. Many of the rooms along the halls of that floor were locked with no labels on the walls beside their solid doors. As she had not paid attention to the floor directory when they entered, she wondered what primary use was for the rooms. Kanae turned left off the main hallway and unlocked the first in a bank of smaller doors with tiny windows in the middle of them. Inside, the room was empty. The walls seemed to be covered with textured mats in red, grey, and blue. Kyoko looked around in confusion before looking at Kanae for answers.

"It's a quiet room," she provided, then pointed to the walls. "Those wavy-looking mats are acoustic padding to absorb sound and the walls behind them are soundproofed. Notice there's no echo in here even though the room's completely empty."

"Oh," Kyoko said, realizing she was right. "Then what are we doing here?"

Kanae gave her a conspiratorial smile, "A lot of us grunts sneak down here on occasion when we're having particularly stressful days. Don't you ever want to just scream as loudly as you can when you're upset?"

"Often."

"Well, here's your chance to do it where no one can hear you."

With that, she moved her hands in a shooing gesture before walking out of the room and closing the door softly behind her. Kyoko continued to stare at the walls for several seconds and wondered where to begin. Her first attempt came out as little more than an open-mouthed groan. The sound was flat and dead in her ears. Considering this was supposed to be therapeutic, she knew she could do better. Were she still in the frenzied state from the day before, she could easily have marched in that room and screamed to her heart's content. However, now that things had cooled, she would have to try a bit harder to find the motivation.

She shut her eyes tightly and thought about everything that led her to this point. Spending her days as little more than a prisoner of the Academy. The fight to regain her missing memories and the numerous roadblocks she has encountered along the way. The truth behind her father's abrupt exit from their family and her mother's estrangement. Each thought piled upon the other, making a precariously structured tower and, as it grew in height, a pressure built up in her chest. The accompanying guilt that she had completely forgotten about an important person from her past was what caused the tower to topple over.

Her fingers curled themselves into a tight fist as the dam broke and the pressure escaped through her mouth in a shrieking howl. It continued until she used all the breath in her lungs, at which point she promptly refilled them with a heaving gasp and did it again. Somewhere along the way, a thin trail of tears leaked from her closed eyes down to her chin.

The fourth scream was little more than a tired wail and Kyoko realized she was most likely finished. Wiping her face in her sleeves, she noticed she felt lighter than she had earlier. She took a few deep breaths before opening the door and stepping back into the hallway. Kanae assessed her momentarily when she exited and nodded once.

"Much better, right?"

"This was definitely what I needed," she nodded. "Thanks."

"It's one of the perks of being friends with an empath," Kanae pointed out, preening exaggeratedly.

"It's quite nice to know someone who can help manage my emotions when I don't know how to," Kyoko admitted.

Kanae took her hand and patted it gently with a smile, "All you have to do is acknowledge your feelings when they happen instead of pushing them aside for later."

"Yea, I'm not exactly accustomed to doing that."

"I hadn't noticed," Kanae's smile quirked up on one side and she rolled her eyes. "Anyway, let's go get something to eat before you start talking about food again."

* * *

After screaming in a soundproofed room and enjoying a decent meal in the company of a friend, Kyoko was feeling a bit more positive about life in general. Granted, the reality of her situation still hung ominously over her head, but she was able to let go of the stress for a little while. Perhaps it was this newfound sense of calm that encouraged her to approach a familiar face in the lobby of her apartment complex when she spotted them.

"What brings you by my neck of the woods?" she asked casually.

"Oh, hey! I was just coming from seeing… a friend," Sho finished awkwardly

"I see," she looked at him skeptically.

"So, this is where you live now, huh?"

"Yep," she said flatly.

The air hung around them uncomfortably as their conversation halted.

"Would you like to come up and visit?" she asked finally, blurting it out in a rush. "We haven't exactly had a chance to have more than a quick chat inside empty classrooms."

He laughed nervously as he thought over his answer, then nodded, "Yea, sure, why not."

Like a proper host, she offered Sho something to drink before they settled at the small table in her kitchenette. Once they each had a glass in front of them, they sat there in silence for a moment, neither one knowing exactly what to say first. Kyoko decided to be the first to take the plunge and start the conversation.

"I took your advice and talked to Mom," she began timidly.

"Wow, really? Never knew you had it in you," he gave her shoulder a gentle, congratulatory shove.

She rolled her eyes at the quip and shook her head, "Anyway, I wanted to thank you for what you did for me."

"I only suggested you go see her. I didn't do that much," he protested, wrinkling his nose in disagreement.

"I don't mean for that," she clarified. "She told me the real reason your family went on vacation that year."

His eyes opened wide and he looked at her in surprise. Kyoko assumed he was unaware that her mother was told about his request.

"Guess it was too much to hope that my parents didn't still have big mouths," he grumbled, then shrugged. "You were such a crybaby back then and it really upset you when your Dad left. I was afraid of what I'd be coming back to if we went on vacation right after that."

"I know," she said, smiling. "It was surprisingly nice of you."

"That's me," he chuckled. "Surprisingly nice."

"Even if it was for your own benefit so that you wouldn't have to deal with me being a giant 'crybaby' when you got back," she pointed out.

"Yea, it probably wasn't all that selfless, huh?" he admitted sheepishly.

"It's okay," she assured. "I think I've finally realized and accepted that part of you. Since you're probably not going to change any time soon, it's better that I did it sooner rather than later."

"At least you'll know something's really wrong with me if that ever does happen," Sho joked.

"I'll be sure to alert the authorities," she said drily.

Kyoko then added in a more serious tone, "She also told me the real reason my father left. Did you know anything about that?"

Sho swallowed thickly but nodded, "I accidentally overheard my parents talking about it one night. They said you weren't supposed to know about it when I asked and they told me I couldn't say a word."

Kyoko's first thought was that she should be angry at him for that but, knowing what she knew now, it was impossible. If anything, his silence helped her stay positive during her early and mid teens when her peers began developing various abilities. Besides, for all his teenaged rebellion, Sho was always fiercely loyal to his family. If they made him keep a promise like that, he would have done so without question.

"Well, that might mean my time here will be cut short," she wove the lie calmly. "No point in them keeping me around if there's no chance of me having an ability."

"Will you be alright if that happens?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"I'll figure something out," she said offhandedly. "It wouldn't be the first time I've had to find work in the city as an Unaugmented."

"Guess I won't have to worry about you, then."

"Not like you ever did anyway," she was quick to retort.

He scoffed and gave her a knowing smile.

The silence that settled between them that time was much more relaxed this time around and Kyoko got up to refill her glass with water. It gave her a brief respite as she figured out how to ask her next question. It was something that she chose to ignore for the most part but, now that he was there, she decided she might as well find out once and for all.

"So, tell me about this friend you were visiting," she said smoothly when she sat back down. "Is she pretty? How long have you two been dating?"

"She—how did you know?"

"I've had my suspicions for a while now, though I probably didn't want to admit it to myself," she said, waving a hand as if it were nothing. "Is that the real reason you wanted to avoid anyone seeing us together? You didn't want her to get the wrong idea about us?"

He considered how to finagle his way out of it before he gave up with a sigh, "To be honest, I didn't want you to get the _right_ idea about _her_."

"Meaning?" she asked slowly, already guessing what he meant, but wanting confirmation.

"Meaning I was keeping it a secret from you because I kinda already knew how you feel about me," he said in a strained voice, squirming a bit in his chair as he spoke.

"And how do I feel about you?" she asked, one eyebrow raised and her arms crossed.

"Oh, come on, Kyoko, it was pretty obvious that you have a crush on me."

"Had," she corrected quickly, recognizing the truth in the words before they even left her mouth. "That… isn't the case anymore."

"Oh, well," he faltered momentarily before continuing. "Anyway, I wasn't sure how you'd react, so that's why I hid it."

"So, you chose to cover your own ass under the guise of not hurting my feelings as usual?" she accused.

"I guess so," he said with mild irritation, then sighed. "I just—I don't know how to handle you. I never have. We've been friends since forever and I still freeze up every time I think you're about to get majorly pissed off or start crying over something."

She paused a moment before replying, "Well, that sounds like a personal issue you need to work on. But, in the future, know that you can always just tell me the truth."

"I'll try. It won't be so easy after fifteen years of friendship, you know. My bad habits are already too deeply ingrained," he said with a wry smile.

"Don't worry, I believe in you," she jested in return.

They laughed comfortably together for the first time in what felt like years. While she supposed she should have been saddened by the fact that her feelings were unrequited, the fact that they would still be friends was a greater comfort. Sure, he was not a shining example of what a good friend should be but, more often than not, his heart was in the right place. Kyoko would take what she could get from him. It would have been much more painful to throw away a lifelong friendship because of mutual miscommunication. Just as he could have spoken up, so too could she have been upfront with him about how she felt. They were equally to blame.

Plus, she was intentionally keeping something very big from him. Granted, it did not include him and she thought it better to sort it out on her own without him getting involved. There was nothing he could do for her, anyway, since he was on vacation at the time. This was solely between her and Ren… and Kuon.

"I should probably get going," he said once their laughter died down. "There's a Kinetic Theory 2 exam tomorrow that I have to finish studying for."

"Don't let me keep you, then," she stood up when he did and walked with him to her door.

"Now that I know where you live, I can always come bother you some other time."

"You'll have to do it soon before they kick me out of here," she reminded him.

"If not, be sure to leave me a forwarding address," he threw her a wink over his shoulder.

She smiled, "Sure thing."

Once the door had closed behind him, she walked back to the table to collect the two glasses. Taking them to the sink, she realized she felt oddly thankful that things turned out the way they did. Her life may have taken a bizarre turn but, considering how little she knew at the start of it, she was better off finally learning what had been kept from her. Perhaps, she pondered, it was a good thing that she happened to find him in the library that day after forgetting to give him his lunch.

Her blood suddenly turned to ice in her veins as the glasses slipped from her hands, fell in the sink and shattered.

* * *

 **CATCHING MY BREATH OVER HERE: Everyone, you have _no_ idea how much I struggled on this chapter. It didn't fully come together until two days ago but I'm so glad it did. I'm skipping town again tomorrow for a bit and it could potentially delay the next chapter since I'll have less time to write, but I will try my best to stay on schedule. If I can't, at least you can say you were warned.**

 **Hopefully I'll see you here in two weeks. If not, I'll miss you all terribly until I'm back.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	16. Choices

**CHAPTER 15: CHOICES**

Quite possibly the worst part about observing a phenomenon alone is the fact that you _are_ alone. No one else is there to corroborate your story. No one can tell you that you are not, in fact, going crazy and this is not all in your head. And, perhaps the worst of all, is when no one is there to witness you doing something amazingly impressive that probably cannot be reproduced under any other circumstances.

Kyoko was having a similar experience as she stared at the broken glass pieces before her. She believed the whole thing occurred in slow motion and she could see every crack forming before the tiny pieces scattered into the air as a result of the impact with the ceramic surface of the sink. Alas, she was all by herself in her tiny apartment and was, therefore, unable to confer with anyone as to what she saw. The fact that she knew of the potential existence of her ability could have skewed her perception and she was forced to assume that she merely imagined the whole thing. It was, understandably, frustrating.

She figured there was some sort of technical term for it, that physicists probably used in their stuffy laboratories, and partially entertained the idea of looking up what it was called before she realized it was not at all important. What _was_ important was the fact that she, somehow, had regained a lost memory. The unfortunate part was that she had no clue as to how it happened. However, she assumed it must have something to do with the fact that she and Sho managed to reconcile with each other as it did not seem to have any other connection to the remainder of her missing memories.

While the spontaneous appearance of a lost memory was worrying enough, Kyoko was curious as to whether or not there was any evidence of her supposed ability contained in it. Having only just returned, the details were still a little fuzzy and she could not reliably say for certain. She shook her head to herself somberly. Then, she remembered. There was an incredibly easy way for her to find out.

Arriving at her memory archives in short order, Kyoko quickly located the smaller shrub surrounding the pond. Her brow furrowed and she frowned slightly as she scrutinized the offering of flowers to find the right one. After a few seconds, she plucked a narcissus with two fingers and brought it to the water's edge. She spun it between her fingers and looked at the smooth, white petals surrounding the yellow, fluted cup in the center.

"This one definitely wasn't here before," she mused aloud, still looking at the bloom she held.

Holding the flower over the surface of the pond, she let the liquid contained within drop into the water.

The memory began innocuously enough and she watched the city rush by from her first-person point of view as she hurried towards the Academy after noticing the second lunch container in her bag. Once it progressed to the scene she found in the library, Kyoko almost wanted to avert her eyes. But, she could not look away from what happened after.

Her eyes were drawn to the people in the library in her periphery as she made her way back outside. She looked at the bizarre tableau and wondered if it was similar to what Ren witnessed in the hospital hallway just a few days ago. Library patrons were frozen in place around her, like mannequins elaborately posed to appear as if they were in the middle of walking, conversing animatedly or simply pulling a book from one of the shelves. When the memory faded upon her blackout in the courtyard, Kyoko sat beside the pond with wide eyes. Her lips were pulled tightly into a line and she stayed like that for a few seconds.

Her ability was definitely real. She had confirmed it.

Was it going to be like this every time? Was she just going to freeze everyone around her when she gets upset over something? Is that the extent of her ability? According to Ren, there were no reliable accounts of temporal manipulators. How would she know that she was not just a literal walking time bomb? Her thoughts were cluttered with worries that piled themselves on top of each other.

Kyoko began to wonder if maybe this whole thing was a bad idea and she should quit while she was ahead. If there was no way for her to control her ability; if someone else found out, she would have to go into hiding like all the others. Perhaps it was not worth it. Besides, who needs memories they cannot remember anyway, right?

Suffice it to say that Kyoko had not slept well that night and was remarkably antsy the next morning. Something Dr. Asami noticed when she reported to her office after a follow-up appointment to ensure she recovered fully from her recent fainting spell.

"You seem uneasy today, Kyoko. Is everything alright?"

"Oh! Yes! Sure, everything's fine," she did her best to be convincing but the doctor thought otherwise.

"You don't seem like you're fine," Dr. Asami said gently.

"I'm—" she let out a breath before deciding to come clean, well, as clean as she could given the audience. "I'm just coping with some stuff."

"Care to expand on that?"

Where to start? There was a lot going on and a good majority of it she refused to share due to the possible implications it would have for both her and a certain Inquisitor. But, now that her behavior had raised the suspicions of her physician, she had to tell her _something_. Her brain worked double-time to come up with a course of action. And a convincing lie.

"Well, I had an enlightening conversation with my mother," starting from the beginning—somewhat, at least—seemed like a good idea. "Thank you, by the way, for allowing me time to leave Academy grounds to do that."

"You're welcome," the doctor said offhandedly before focusing in on the first part of what Kyoko said. "What happened between you and your mother?"

She gave her the truncated version of the conversation, but still managed to weave a tale of how utterly distraught she was after finding out the truth of her parentage. Not to mention what that would mean for her ever having an ability. As the doctor listened, Kyoko could see her eyebrows arch higher and higher on her forehead. This was turning out to be easier than she thought. The details of her tragic past were actually providing the perfect reasons for removing any suspicions of her having an Awakening. The grin she wanted to display at the realization of her own genius was suppressed in favor of a doleful frown as she stared at her shoes.

"That's very sad to hear and I'm sorry you had to be burdened with that," Dr. Asami said in consolation. "Though, I wish that explained why you suddenly lost your memory of what happened the day we found you."

"Actually, about that," she started, keeping her head down in case there was the chance of a glint in her eye as she nearly pounced at the opportunity laid before her. "I managed to recover my memories just last night after talking with my friend. As it turns out, he actually was the reason for it the whole time."

Kyoko was grateful that she only ever spoke about her recent missing memories. The existence of the ones she and Ren discovered after the fact was kept strictly between them. Luckily, it made the explanation she gave much more plausible. Dr. Asami listened in stunned silence as the young woman told her tale of finding her beloved childhood friend in the amorous embrace of a classmate. The devastation of witnessing such a thing, paired with her unrequited feelings, was a powerful combination that caused her to have difficulties with properly processing the situation. As such, her first instinct was to pretend as if it never happened.

"So, you repressed the memory because it was a traumatic experience?" Dr. Asami still sounded somewhat doubtful. "Then, why did you faint outside of the library?"

"Surely the doctors would have told you when I was admitted to the hospital," Kyoko looked up at her in surprise. "I hadn't eaten since the morning and rushed over here from across town because I accidentally packed his lunch alongside my own. That was my whole reason for coming here in the first place."

"They did say your blood pressure was abnormally low when you were admitted…" the physician trailed off.

The young woman held her hands out in a proffering gesture, signaling that this was probably the most likely explanation. The doctor sighed, her shoulders sloping downward. It certainly was a losing battle to pursue this any further. The Academy had already spent enough resources on nothing more than a possibility and Dr. Asami knew she would have difficulty getting any further support. Still, she could not shake the feeling that she was missing something. Unfortunately for her, that feeling was not enough to justify housing and feeding someone in which the Academy, essentially, had zero interest.

"Well, Kyoko, I appreciate you being so forthcoming about everything. Of course, you realize this means that your time here will be terminated," the older woman pointed out. "Not everyone would be so eager to give up the benefit of living under the provision of the Academy."

"If you recall, I was reluctant to come here in the first place," Kyoko reminded her. "But, I suppose I'll miss spending so much time with Kanae. I was lucky to find a friend in her."

There was another she would also miss seeing but, as much as the truth of that statement unsettled her in ways she could not describe, she could think about that later. She had a feeling they would see each other regularly enough as they were still bound to each other by their as-yet undefined shared past.

"You are still free to see her when she's not working as, I'm sure, you already know," the doctor stated.

Kyoko nodded.

"Then, I suppose, I'll get started on the paperwork to have you released from here," Dr. Asami said, then paused ominously as an additional thought occurred to her.

She looked down at her desk to see the memo that had been delivered to her earlier that morning. Perhaps, she considered, the whole predicament could be useful in another way. And, maybe, Kyoko could learn something interesting about herself in the process.

"However, there is one more thing I will have you complete before your time here is over," she said at last.

"And that is?" Kyoko asked slowly, warily eyeing the doctor who pensively tapped a finger against her chin.

"There is some new equipment that is still in its experimental phase and is being vetted by researchers at a few Academies worldwide, ours included," the doctor explained. "It's supposed to allow for a more reliable testing for proof of an ability as the creators claim to have discovered that each Augmented person has a unique energy signature once they've had an Awakening."

"I see," said the young woman, somehow, managing to maintain an expressionless face. "And how would I be beneficial to this… vetting process you called it?"

"Well, as an Unaugmented who was mistaken for having experienced an Awakening, it would be good data for them to collect. Your situation makes for an interesting case study that they can use to prove to their boards and benefactors that they studied a wide range of individuals, both typical and anomalous," Dr. Asami provided. "There could be something new to learn about your unique circumstances. I think it might be a beneficial experience for both you and them."

"I suppose that means my days of being a lab rat aren't quite over," Kyoko tried to temper the spite in her voice with mild disappointment.

It really did seem a bit too easy, she thought in retrospect. She should have expected there would be a wrench thrown in the works. However, this one was approximately the size of an enraged hippopotamus, and equally as frightening. Additionally, nowhere in this conversation was it implied that she had a choice.

Then again, that made perfect sense. She was being housed and provided for by the Academy only because there was the promise of her having an ability. Now that there was sufficient evidence to the contrary, they might as well get some sort of benefit from the deal. Nothing in life ever came for free. Someone, somewhere along the line, had to pay for it. This time, she was being called upon to close out her tab.

Kyoko suddenly felt sick to her stomach. As much as she wanted to talk to Kanae about this, she realized she was not about to involve an innocent party. Though she had proven herself—multiple times—to be a great friend, she could not risk potentially exposing Ren's secret in the process. She would have to pay a visit to her favorite tree instead. At least, until she was able to see Ren later. Before all of that that, however, she figured she might as well find out when her impending doom will occur so she can pencil it into her calendar.

"So, when were you thinking of scheduling me for all of this?"

* * *

When he arrived at their meeting place, Ren noticed two things; one, he was not the first one to get there and, two, he was apparently tardy enough that the other party had fallen asleep while waiting for him.

Kyoko fitfully snoozed with her head turned to one side resting on an open book. One arm rested limply in her lap while the other curled around her head on the table. Her cheek was smushed so firmly into the crevice between the pages, it pushed her open mouth into an adorably twisted pout. He fought back a chuckle of amusement at the sight and opted to smile gently instead. Blatantly ignoring the strange twinge he felt in his chest at the sight, he settled himself at a different table before gently nudging her telepathically.

 _'Kyoko, wake up.'_

She awoke with a snort across the room and mumbled aloud, "Hmm? I'm up."

There was no fighting the short quiet laugh that rumbled out of him, but he managed to smoothly convert it into a cough.

 _'I apologize for waking you. Sorry I'm late. Meet you in your mind?'_

"Oh," she spoke out loud again before she caught herself and settled her had back against the book to appear as if she had gone back to sleep.

"Did you not get enough rest since we last spoke?" he asked when they finally reconvened in her mindscape.

"It's not only that," she shook her head. "I've just had a less than ideal day."

Kyoko told him everything she had said to Dr. Asami, explaining the possible reasons as to why she might have been mistaken for having experienced an Awakening. Nodding as he followed along, Ren was impressed at how cohesively she was able to weave a story for the doctor that left very few exploitable holes. Despite the fact that the nature of his job is to assist in the prosecution of criminals, he felt little unease at admiring the genius of her deception.

When she got to the topic of her recovered memory, she apologized in advance for the potentially embarrassing details. Embarrassed was not exactly the word he would use to describe how he felt at that time. It was something more along the lines of irritation. He felt the sudden desire to seek retribution from this supposed 'friend' who hurt her. Pushing that thought aside, he noticed the pacing of her speech had slowed down. As if there was something more she was reluctant to share.

"Kyoko, I can tell there's something else," he said carefully. "What aren't you telling me?"

A long, low sigh left her as she prepared to tell him the final part of her conversation with the doctor. Then, she tumbled headlong into the explanation. She rattled off a full account of what was said, peppering in her own introspective thoughts along the way. It was not until she reached the end that she realized she had yet to take an additional breath.

Ren was silent for several beats as he let her words sink in. His first reaction was a sharp curse, for which he swiftly apologized to the startled young woman beside him. He remembered the mention of the research equipment at a previous Assembly meeting but dismissed it as it sounded fairly nebulous at the time. Sure, it was a minor concern for him, but he figured he had time to consult with his superior before it became an imminent threat to his position. Also, he was not a voting member of the Assembly and, as such, it was not his decision to allow it to be brought to the Academy for initial testing.

Now that minor concern was a real threat. But not for him. He noticed Kyoko's panicked state began to manifest in her mindscape in the form of rolling, dark clouds that slowly began to cover the sky above them. His reaction was not helping, he realized, and tried to calm himself down before he attempted to help her any further.

Ren never stopped to question his actions when he reached out and pulled her against him. By the time he recognized what he was doing, it was already too late anyway. She flinched at the initial contact, but eventually leaned against him, taking comfort in the gesture. He slowly ran a hand up and down her forearm in a soothing motion. The cloud cover thinned out marginally.

"So, what do we do now?" she asked, looking up at him.

"I believe that is mostly up to you," he said. "There's little I can do to change your doctor's mind."

"I keep thinking that maybe I'm better off without ever regaining my memories," she admitted eventually, curling herself closer towards him. "Maybe, if I hold off, someone else like me will be discovered and I won't be such a novelty. I mean, what good is an ability that no one's definitively seen before? No one can teach me how to control it."

She sighed again, "Then again, it's not like I can control it right now, either."

It was easy for Ren to sympathize with her concern. Considering how many years he was in denial of his own ability before coming to this Academy, he would be a hypocrite to dismiss her feelings. Knowing that he could now wrangle it and bend it to his will made him less afraid of it than he was in the past.

"I know I said I would go along with whatever decision you ultimately made," he began softly. "But wouldn't you rather be able to explore your own limitations and what you can do? A similar situation could happen in the future and you'd be powerless to stop it unless you knew what you were doing."

"You were able to do it," she objected weakly, turning further to tuck her head against his arm.

"Yes, by staying at home and not talking to anyone for years. Do you really want to put your life indefinitely on hold like that just so you can hide from your own ability?" he asked earnestly, pleading for her to see the logic. "I can tell you from personal experience that it's not a lifestyle I would wish on anyone."

He waited patiently as the silence between them stretched out for several seconds.

"You're right. I'm sorry," she mumbled into his shoulder.

"There's no need to apologize."

"There is," she insisted. "I made light of your experience in comparing it to mine. You were incredibly strong and brave to be able to move on from something like that and, here I am, fretting because I can involuntarily stop time for a few minutes."

"I know you didn't mean anything by it. It's alright," he assured her. "Besides, your situation could be potentially more dangerous if this experimental equipment actually works."

"Well, we'll know for sure tomorrow," she tried to say it casually, but her voice broke halfway through. "That's when I'm scheduled to meet with the research team."

"That's… awfully soon," he frowned.

Kyoko nodded her head in agreement then gently pulled herself from his embrace. Taking his hand in hers, she laced their fingers together, shut her eyes tightly and took a deep breath.

"I think it's time," she said, her eyes still closed.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked hesitantly. "You seemed uncertain as to whether or not you even wanted to have an ability just a few moments ago."

"I'm sure," she affirmed, looking him in the eye unwaveringly. "If it all falls apart tomorrow and I am discovered, I want to know the truth of who we are to each other and what exactly happened ten years ago to cause us to both forget about it. I'd rather know now while I can freely make this choice."

"Okay," Ren breathed, running a hand through his hair as his mind raced. "But we can't do this here. We don't know how long this will take or what will even happen. Let's go someplace safer."

"My apartment's not far from here," she suggested.

"No, I'm too recognizable to go anywhere in the immediate vicinity," he shook his head. "My apartment is not on Academy grounds. We'd be better off there."

"That makes sense," she agreed. "Should I wait a bit here after you leave so that we're not seen together?"

He nodded. "It's not too late, so you should be fine to make the trip alone. However, be sure to call me if you feel at all unsafe."

He gave her his phone number and address, which she repeated back to him twice to be sure she had it correct. Once he left the library, she maintained the act of napping on top of her—rather uncomfortable—book pillow. She gave him a ten minute lead before making her own way into the city.

The first thing she noticed upon her arrival was that his apartment was furnished solely for function rather than looks. Vases, candlesticks and decorative bowls were nowhere to be found. There were no family photos either. Though, she guessed, there was good reason for that. Everything was either black, white, or a varying shade of gray. In a word, it was boring.

Kyoko realized it was not unlike her current apartment in terms of sparseness. Then again, she had not moved there by her own volition. It saddened her to think that this was how he willingly chose to live. While she knew he decided on this life for his own security, this seemed like a painful, constant reminder of everything he gave up just to do so. Just like his career, his apartment was merely a necessity to maintain his cover.

"Would you like something to drink?" Ren asked, his voice shaking her free from her thoughts.

"Sure, what do you have?" she inquired politely, tearing her eyes away from ogling his spartan dwelling to look at where he stood in his small kitchen.

"Not much, admittedly, but I think I can manage tea, coffee or water," he offered.

"Coffee, then, please," she said, puffing out her cheeks. "I have a feeling this is going to be a long night."

"Good call," he said in agreement. "I'll have the same."

They settled with their respective drinks on the sofa. A tense silence filled the room as they took quiet sips from their mugs. Their long-awaited discovery was finally on the horizon. It was understandable that they were both very nervous about what lay ahead for them. Whatever they learned could change their lives forever. Well, either that, or be horribly disappointing.

Kyoko stared intently at her mug while her open hand inched slowly along the seat cushion until it touched his. She looked up at him as she wrapped her fingers around his, giving him an encouraging smile. Holding his hand then felt different than it did inside her mind. The warmth of his palm was in stark contrast to his icy fingertips and the texture of his skin felt much more pronounced against her own. Ren sucked in a shaky breath, put down his own mug, and smiled back.

"Alright," he said. "I guess we're doing this."

* * *

 **I HOPE YOU'RE PREPARED, BECAUSE IT'S HAPPENING! Alright, first, let me apologize for the (unintentionally) extended hiatus. I forgot I was going out of town not long after I got back and had little time to work on this chapter. That said, it was a very nice and relaxing break, but I am so happy to be back. Everything should stay on schedule until sometime late next month and I'll try to warn you in advance. However** **, that means you should have an uninterrupted update schedule for the most important chapters.**

 **Anyway, thanks to everyone who reviewed and followed/favorited during my break. You are all wonderful!**

 **Also, many, many thanks to the certain someone who helped me figure out what this chapter was missing after running into some rather terrible writer's block, you know who you are. I will forever sing your praises (loudly and off-key).**

 **AUTHOR OUT**


	17. Pieces

**CHAPTER 16: PIECES**

Earlier that day, Dr. Haruki Asami was paid a visit some time after submitting her official request for Kyoko's dismissal. Representative Sawara sat in the chair across from her desk, dressed in his usual grey suit with his hands folded in his lap. It was a pleasant surprise because they had not had the opportunity to see each other since their last meeting regarding her charge's treatment plan. They chatted happily back and forth about their families and plans for upcoming holidays.

"How have you been otherwise? Swamped with work as usual?" Sawara asked.

"Oh, always. You know me," she said with an exaggerated sigh of exhaustion. "Though, one of the bigger things on my plate will be gone in a few days or so."

"Really?" he asked with interest. "Which one?"

"That girl you brought in here after she collapsed in front of the library," Dr. Asami explained. "Remember her?"

"Ah, yes, Miss Mogami, was it?" he thought aloud. "Is she finally going to be integrated into an education and training program?"

"No, that's the weird part," she said, shaking her head in disbelief. "It turns out she never had an Awakening to begin with."

"So the sensors were wrong?" he asked dubiously.

"I guess so," the doctor's fingers spread out on the desk before her as she spoke. "After several unsuccessful appointments with Inquisitor Tsuruga, she met with her mother, who told her she was evaluated to have less than a one percent chance of developing an Ability as a child. I called the woman after I spoke with Kyoko this morning to confirm it. Apparently, she was just undernourished and suppressing the unpleasant memory of finding her best friend making kissy-face with some classmate of his."

"Oh, well, that is interesting… and quite unexpected," Sawara mused.

"It's a crazy set of coincidences, right?"

"It would appear so," he said. "I suppose getting an Inquisitor involved was probably a bit of overkill."

"He almost made things worse, in fact. Thankfully Takarada reeled him in after he put her in the hospital. Don't worry, he was properly reprimanded and placed on administrative leave," she assured.

"I wasn't worried. Takarada does a fine job of keeping his Inquisitors in line," he said, waving his hand in a dismissive gesture. "I guess you're going to have her dismissed, then?"

"Fairly soon, yes" she nodded. "But, I've made an appointment for her to meet with the AADU research team tomorrow."

"That's ambitious," Sawara remarked with raised eyebrows. "What caused you to make a decision like that?"

"Well, at first, I figured her unique circumstances would at least make for decent data," she shrugged. "But…"

"But what?" he prompted, urging her to continue.

"I don't know," she said in frustration, her fingers now curling into fists. "I just get the feeling that I'm missing something. That there's something different about her. I wish I could explain it better, but the fact that I can't means that I also can't justify having the Academy keep her here."

"I see," Sawara said slowly.

"I know, I know," Dr. Asami held up a hand. "It's not a professional or qualified opinion. To be honest, I feel terrible for even considering it. I feel even worse for signing her up for more testing when she's already gone through so much."

"You're a doctor, Haruki," he said in a smooth, reassuring tone. "You can't blame yourself for wanting to gain a better understanding of your patient."

"But to go to this length? I mean, she's already been subjected to the mental probing of our strongest Inquisitor," she said, pushing her fingers roughly into her hair. "It's like adding insult to injury."

"Now, now. Don't be so hard on yourself," he soothed her with expert patience. "You've done nothing wrong. If anything, you should be praised for being so thorough. Not everyone can be—or should be—focused on the bigger picture. It's important for some of us to pay attention to the details, too."

"I suppose you're right," she admitted, hanging her head slightly. "Maybe I'm just desperate to find something, _anything_ , to prove my hunch is right."

"Well, you never know," the man across from her consoled. "I probably would have made the same consideration as you, were I in your position."

"Would you?" she asked, not quite believing his calming words.

"Sure! Besides, who knows, maybe they'll learn something interesting tomorrow, regardless of how it turns out," he posited.

"Maybe," she said, not entirely convinced or enthused by the seemingly rare possibility.

"All that aside, I should probably get going," Sawara said gently, getting up from his chair. "I know you're as busy as I am, but it was nice to have a chance to catch up."

"It was," she agreed. "Don't be a stranger, Takenori."

"Likewise, Haruki," he smiled at her. "Try not to stress yourself out so much over your patients."

"I'll do my best, but no promises," the doctor laughed.

With a nod, the man left her office. The doctor sighed again, sounding somewhat relieved now that she had voiced her worries to a sympathetic ear. Representative Sawara always did have a talent for putting her mind at ease. He seemed to know just the right words to say and she was grateful to have him as a friend. While she was closer with Professor Ogata because they typically spent more time together—his schedule gave him a lot more leeway and availability—she appreciated the instant rapport she had with Takenori despite, oftentimes, not seeing each other for months at a time.

She turned her attention to the neglected mountain of papers pushed to the side of her desk. With determined hands, she pulled a small stack from the top and set to work on them. Perhaps it would be a blessing if nothing momentous happened with Kyoko the next day, she considered. At least, then, she would have more time available to complete all of this paperwork.

* * *

They stood in front of the wall with which they had become quite familiar over the past weeks. While it still loomed over them with impressive height, its appearance was less mocking than in the past. The intimidating nature of the wall itself had been, mostly, conquered. It was the mystery that lay beyond it that still remained to be solved. With any luck, that would be conquered as well.

Kyoko looked up at the wall, feeling a strange tightness in her chest that made her question whether or not she was doing the right thing. It always seemed like apprehension was at its most intense at the start of an important quest. At this point, their anxiety was nearly burying them alive under its oppressive weight. She rolled her shoulders, as if to ease some of the tension that had settled there, and stalked over to where the door was located.

Ren followed silently in her wake and she stopped a few steps away. Turning back to where he abruptly halted behind her, she gestured towards the door.

"Lock," she said flatly.

Looking at her curiously, Ren reached into his pocket for the item he knew they needed. Holding it up between them, he looked past it at her and raised an eyebrow.

"Key?" he asked, unsure as to where this strange non-conversation was heading.

She nodded with a smile.

"I'm just trying to get a grasp on what Kuon told us." she explained. "It still doesn't quite make sense, but I get the feeling that metaphors aren't exactly his strong suit."

"Wasn't it a simile?" Ren asked in confusion.

Kyoko crossed her arms and squinted dubiously at him, her lips pursed and pushed to one side.

"Is it really the time to be debating this?" she asked seriously.

"No, you're right. Sorry," he ducked his head in apology. "Nerves, I suppose."

She let out a short, sympathetic giggle as Ren went to unlock the door and they entered through the wall. Retracing their steps to the clearing in the forest where the empty pond was, they stared at it blankly before looking to each other for any hints as to how they should proceed. Kyoko put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot as she thought.

"I have a feeling this might not work as it seems too obvious. But I'd be upset with myself if we didn't at least try," she said with a sigh.

"Sometimes the correct answer is the most obvious one," Ren agreed. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well, it'll be a little labor intensive but, since we don't exactly get tired in here, it shouldn't be too bad," she continued to look at the shallow pit of dry dirt as she spoke.

He momentarily considered whether or not he should be worried when he followed Kyoko towards the replica of her childhood home. She seemed to know exactly what she was looking for, so he silently let her take the lead as she dug through a closet in the laundry room in addition to several kitchen cabinets. Ren was hovering just outside of the kitchen when she finally emerged, holding a large stock pot in one hand, bracing the base of it against her hip. Her other hand gripped the handle of a bucket as it swung freely with each step.

"Is the plumbing even functional in this place?" Ren asked, guessing at what she was planning to attempt.

"No idea," she said with a shrug. "I hadn't thought to check, but we won't need it either way."

"We won't?" he echoed doubtfully.

Kyoko shook her head with a smile and held out the hand holding the bucket. He studied it for a moment before reaching over to grab the pot she hugged against her side. Knowing it would be the more unwieldy of the two to carry, he left her with the easier option. She huffed indignantly at the gesture but he simply gave her a pointed look that suggested she say nothing further about it. Her shoulders slumped in resignation and she shifted the bucket over to the opposite hand.

"So, where to?" Ren asked, cradling the pot in his hands.

"The only place we can get the right kind of water for this," she said cryptically as she made her way to the front door to leave.

Ren watched her determined stride as she led the way back outside the wall. Her arms moved back and forth as if she were running marching drills and the bucket creaked with each swing. A muffled chuckle escaped his lips that he hoped she missed. Unfortunately for him, she stopped briefly to look at him, arching an eyebrow in a questioning manner. He shook his head innocently and she narrowed her eyes at him before continuing on.

He had an inkling as to where she was going, but it was confirmed as they neared her memory archives. It made a lot of sense that they would try this first, he realized. No sense in doing something elaborate when the logical approach would work just as well.

They decided to use the bucket first to fill the pot from the pond. The water was crystal clear and shimmered silently in the pot once it had been filled, like it had trace amounts of fine glitter floating around in it. Once the containers were ready, Ren picked them both up and wordlessly walked away from Kyoko who gaped at him in angered astonishment. She soon recovered and jogged to catch up, swinging in front of him and stopping him in his tracks. Her arms were crossed tightly in front of her and she glowered at him.

"What?" he asked, his tone guiltless.

"You know very well what," she said irritatedly as she pointed to the objects he held. "I am perfectly capable of carrying one of those."

"Well, I'm already carrying them, so there's no need," he shrugged. "Besides, I only wanted to help."

"You can help by carrying one of them. Not both," she maintained.

He pouted, his eyes widening to give his face the appearance of a small, pitiful animal. Kyoko grumbled and rolled her eyes before sighing heavily.

"Fine, you can keep them," she relented begrudgingly "But, enough with the chivalrous heroics after this, alright?"

His pout disappeared in an instant and a pleased smile took its place. Ren nodded in agreement with her terms. She stepped to one side and motioned for him to move forward and they walked together, side-by-side back to the defunct pond on the other side of the wall. Idle chit-chat helped fill the silence. Both of them were eager to keep their mind off the task at hand and the likelihood of failure.

The much smaller pond was wider than it was deep and the contents of the pot alone was nearly enough to fill it. The water kicked up the parched dirt, drenching it and swirling it around to create a cloudy, muddy mixture. When Kyoko bent down to pick up the bucket to fill it the rest of the way, she was stopped by a hand on her arm. Looking up, she saw Ren pointing towards the pond.

The ground appeared to be rather thirsty and was greedily sucking the water into itself. The pond was quickly emptying as the liquid disappeared into the base as if there was a sinkhole. They watched in dismay as the cracked, desert-like dirt reappeared, like the water had never been there to begin with. Ren ran a tired hand over his face while Kyoko pinched at the bridge of her nose in thought. She soon sat down in the dirt, her legs crossed and her hands planted on her knees.

"Alright," she began in a tight voice. "Kuon told us we already have all the pieces we need to solve this, so let's go back to the beginning."

Ren hummed in agreement.

"So, we found our way through the wall without a key first. But, once we got here, we found one," she thought aloud, then pointed to Ren.

He took the cue to produce the key once more. Kyoko pointed to a spot on the ground, indicating that she wanted him to place it there. He obliged, remaining in a crouch afterwards as she continued to ponder.

"I'm unable to touch or use the key, but it works fine for you," her words were picking up speed as they tumbled from her mouth. "In fact, you were able to use it in your own mind and you found the stone!"

Leaning to one side, she reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out the stone she placed there days before when Ren invited her into his own mind. She turned it once to look at both sides before she placed it in the dirt beside the key.

"Lock," she pointed at Ren once more.

"Key," he pointed back to her, surprised he was catching on to her odd reasoning.

She nodded and gave him a thumbs-up with a smile. Sitting amongst the dirt and grass as she was, he imagined that she looked a little like a woodland pixie. The whole setting seemed to be like home for her as she was in no way out of place. Her ease at being in the outdoors reminded him of his younger self from days long past. No wonder Kuon seemed to have taken a liking to her.

"We haven't found a use for this yet," Kyoko gestured towards the stone, the sound of her voice shaking him from his reverie.

"I'm not entirely sure what we would use it _for_ ," Ren added.

"It must be important in some way," she reasoned. "Or else, it would be pointless for it to be locked up in your mind and accessible only by a key that's found in mine."

"Oh, I agree. I'm just at a loss as to how it would be used here." he said in earnest confusion.

"Perhaps it has to do with what the stone represents?" she mused.

"You did say that this was somehow attached to a memory of your father," he recalled. "What about this stone in particular makes it so special?"

"He had a collection of different types of semi-precious stones and he would teach me about them whenever I asked," she said, her brow furrowed in concentration. "This one, in particular, was my favorite."

"Okay, and what do you know about this stone?" he queried, trying to get more clues.

"I know it's called iolite," she said with a shrug. "I suppose I was drawn to it by its color and the fact that the color changes when you turn it. It was different from any of the other pieces in his collection."

"Anything else?" Ren prompted.

"It's also goes by the name water sapphire?" she offered, sounding unsure.

Ren looked thoughtful for a moment as he looked down at the bowl of dry dirt before them. He reached down and picked up the stone, turning it over and over in his hand and flipping it between his fingers. Kyoko looked at him expectantly, almost hearing the gears turning in his head. Tucking his thumb behind the stone, he flicked it forward into the empty pond. They watched as it sailed in an arc before plummeting to the ground and landing with a muted thud. Both held their breath as they waited for something to happen.

Nothing happened.

Their eyes slowly looked away from where the inert stone lay in the dirt and turned to each other. Kyoko raised an eyebrow and Ren raised his hands in a useless gesture. He stood from his crouched position and put his hands in his pockets.

"What exactly did you think would happen?" she asked, getting up to stand beside him.

"You said the other name for it is water sapphire," he said with a shrug. "I figured maybe it would somehow create the water we need in the pond."

"Oh," Kyoko said in realization. "No, that actually does make some sense."

"Unlike everything else around here," Ren muttered in mild annoyance.

She wanted to be offended by his comment, but he was right. The fact that they had come this far through a series of random events was enough of a testament to that.

"Clearly, it didn't work," she stated, displeasure evident in her tone.

"Indeed," Ren nodded. "What now?"

"Maybe if we add some water to it?" she suggested

"Couldn't hurt at this point," he admitted.

Kyoko hefted the bucket over the pond and poured a stream of water directly onto the stone hoping it would cause some sort of reaction. Much to her chagrin, the water merely splashed everywhere as the surface of the object changed its trajectory from vertical to horizontal. Adjusting her aim slightly, she continued to pour the water just beside it until the bucket was empty. They waited anxiously to see if the stone would magically transform the water. Sadly, luck was not on their side and the water was, again, sucked into the earth and the stone was left behind on the inexplicably dry ground.

"Okay, so that's a 'no' on the water entirely. Anything else you happen to know about iolite?" Ren asked, sounding mildly desperate at this point.

Kyoko tapped a finger against her chin as she tried to remember without having to trek all the way back back to her memory archives for a refresher. The wrinkle in her brow gradually smoothed out as she remembered the final tidbit her father had taught her when she was still a toddler. She was not sure how it applied, but it was the only other thing she knew. Had they known this would be important in advance, they probably could have swiped a geology reference book from the library.

"It finds the sun," she said simply.

"It… what?" he tried to make sense of her statement to no avail.

"My father would tell me that explorers used it to find the direction of the sun on cloudy days," she clarified.

She picked up the stone from where it lay and held it up above her head, squinting as she tried to look at the sky through it. Twisting it back and forth in her fingers, she saw the color change from blue-violet to amber as it moved. Ren watched the refracted light dance across her face as she shifted the stone in her hand. It looked a lot like the reflection of ripples of water. An idea formed.

"What if you do that over the pond?"

"Hm?" she asked, looking at him while she still held the stone aloft.

He reached out his hand towards hers, silently asking permission to take it from her. She nodded her assent and he plucked it with two fingers. Holding it up and away from him, he concentrated on the empty pond below. Focusing the shards of light on the dirt, he tilted the stone in the same way he saw Kyoko do it. When he looked away briefly to see if the stone's color was changing as it was angled against the light above them, he heard Kyoko gasp.

Ren's eyes snapped back to her face to see her gaping at the pond. He followed the direction of her stare and saw the pond slowly filling with water, bubbling up from the center as if a spring spontaneously appeared in it. They stared in silent shock, watching the water level rise steadily until it was completely filled and the surface was level with the ground around it.

He tore his eyes away from the now-filled pool to look again at Kyoko.

"Lock," he breathed in quiet astonishment.

She looked up at him, a tiny smile tilting the corner of her mouth.

"Key," she answered with a nod.

Kyoko turned to the small shrub nearby and carefully pulled the giant rose from where it was nestled between the leaves. She walked back to where Ren stood near the water and faced him. Her eyes were filled with apprehension as she took a deep breath and held the blossom out over the pond.

"We do this on the count of three, okay?" she looked at him for confirmation.

"Okay," he nodded.

"One," Kyoko had to remind herself to keep breathing as her trembling fingers held the short stem of the flower.

"Two," Ren kept his eyes locked on hers, as if he would betray her by looking away.

"Three," they said in unison.

Somewhere between two and three, Ren had placed his hand over hers. They held the rose together and gently tipped it towards the newly filled pond. The pink teardrop gem that fell out of it morphed into a sparkling liquid droplet as it descended towards the water. It silently hit the surface and ripples radiated outward in undulating waves from the point of contact.

Kyoko and Ren, still gripping each other's hands as they held the flower, slowly crouched by the water's edge. And waited.

* * *

Chairman Meow sat, purring contentedly in Kuon's lap as he stroked his fingers along the sleek, reddish-brown tabby fur. He wondered idly how his counterpart was doing. Hopefully he and Kyoko were getting closer to figuring out the last piece of the puzzle that unlocked their memories. While the solitude he had inside the mindscape was pleasant most of the time, he longed to be whole again. It still galled him that he was unable to do more than give the pair obscure hints, but they were smart. He had faith that they would figure it out.

When he made his next pass along the cat's spine, he noticed his fingers began to appear faintly translucent. He held his hand up and looked through it as if it were a dirty window pane, hazy with dust and age. It became more transparent as the seconds passed and he looked down, only to realize his entire body was starting to fade completely. Grinning widely, he turned his eyes up towards the sky.

"It's about time, you two."

* * *

 **BUILDING IT UP TO A FEVER PITCH: As if the excitement surrounding what will happen next wasn't intense enough already, I probably just made it worse by making you wait _one more chapter_. Seriously, it's happening next chapter, I swear, but all of this was very important to include for pacing and... because reasons (that's my story and I'm sticking to it-alright, I honestly really wanted them to have that whole 'lock and key' dialogue, okay?). I can't decide if next chapter will be the easiest or hardest to write. I guess there's only one way to find out!**

 **All of my thanks to the awesome folks who have kindly left reviews. You are all super amazing and my motivation to keep coming back here every other week to bring you a new chapter. I'll see you all again in two weeks!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	18. Narratives

**CHAPTER 17: NARRATIVES**

A young boy followed the sound of crying in the forest. The wails were high pitched and abbreviated by sniffles and hiccups. The sound grew louder and he knew he was getting close. However, once he reached the source, he was confused to find no one there except a murmuring stream. Looking around in bewilderment, he started to wonder if the absurd stories he heard about forest spirits were actually true. He was a breath away from believing them before he looked up into the tree he stood beside.

Hanging from a branch a few feet above him was a pair of tiny legs. They were barefoot and dirty and attached to an equally tiny girl with inky black hair. She was perched on the branch, hunched over while her body shook with each sob. When he moved slowly to get closer to her, a twig snapping underfoot gave him away. The crying stopped and the girl looked down at where he stood with wide eyes.

"Where'd you come from?" she asked between sniffles.

"I heard someone crying and I came to see if I could help," the boy answered. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she mumbled into her arm as she rubbed it over her face to wipe away the tears.

"Is it because you're stuck in the tree and you can't get down?" he ventured.

He had seen cats like that before and assumed the same thing could probably happen with people as well.

"Of course I can get down," she snapped, glaring at him haughtily "I climb this tree all the time."

"Okay, okay, I believe you," he said wryly. "But, if you _are_ stuck, I'll help you and I promise I won't tell anyone."

"For the last time, I'm _not_ stuck!" the little girl shouted, her tears long forgotten.

"Alright fine, I'm sorry," he placated. "You know, maybe I was wrong to think you're human. For all I know, you're a dryad or something and you live here."

Her golden eyes went wide as she stared down at him, "You know what dryads are?!"

"Sure I do," the boy said proudly. "I've never met one before, but I assumed they'd be…bigger. Unless you're playing a trick on me and you're really some evil forest spirit that pretends to be a crying child and kidnaps people."

The girl gave him an odd look, tilting her head to one side as if she did not know exactly what to make of this person standing below her.

"If you _are_ an evil spirit, can I ask that you don't take me into the depths of the forest where I'll never be seen again?" he pled earnestly. "I'm an only child and my parents would be really sad about that."

A giggle tinkled down from where the girl sat, her tiny hand placed flat against her mouth as she laughed at the odd boy who stood on the ground beneath her. Carefully shifting down the branch until she reached the trunk, she expertly maneuvered her way back to the ground with practiced ease. She paced over to him and stopped only a few steps away, placing her hands behind her back and peering up at him in curiosity.

"Are you sure that _you're_ not the one who's a forest spirit?" she asked skeptically. "I've never seen anyone with green eyes before."

"Well, I could be a mischievous fairy and I just got you to leave the safety of your tree," he gave her a menacing grin, wiggling his fingers at her. "Are you ready to be taken away to live in the forest forever?"

She giggled at his theatrics, but did not shy away. Instead, she walked closer and extended her hand to him.

"I'm Kyoko," she introduced herself.

"Kuon," he replied, shaking her much smaller hand in his.

"It's nice to meet you, Kuon," she said with a sunny smile. "Now, are you actually gonna kidnap me or can we be friends instead?

They both laughed in unison before falling into a comfortable conversation about their favorite parts of the forest. Kyoko offered to show Kuon the areas he had not had the chance to discover yet and he eagerly accepted. Motioning towards a nearby thicket, she started off in that direction and he easily fell into step beside her. They continued chatting back and forth, a fast friendship formed as they wandered off in search of new adventures.

* * *

"What do you think you're ability's gonna be when you Awaken?" Kyoko asked while bending over to pick up another stone, inspecting it for the appropriate amount of flatness.

"Dunno," Kuon shrugged, skipping a rock across the stream with an effortless flick of his wrist. "Probably a telekinetic or a telepath or something. It seems to run in my family. What about you?"

"My Mom doesn't have an ability," she said quietly. "And my Dad…"

He winced at the mention of her father. Having spent enough time around her at that point to know it was a sore subject and should be avoided at all costs. He eventually asked her the reason for her tears when they first met and he quickly learned of the little girl's distress over talking about the man who was no longer a part of her life. Kuon decided a diversion was necessary.

"What about if you could have any ability in the world?" he asked instead. "Not just one that already exists."

"You mean I could do anything?" she asked dubiously.

"Yep!" he chirped. "Anything at all."

She stood and thought about the question, gripping the three stones she managed to scavenge from the ground. Her eyes darted between Kuon and the forest and the small river that rushed by them. Smiling up at the sun as it filtered through the trees onto her face, she closed her eyes blissfully.

"I think I'd wanna do this forever."

"You want the ability to skip stones?" Kuon let out an incredulous chuckle.

"No, silly," she laughed at his confused response. "I wanna hang out with my friends. Hang out with you. Whenever I want and as long as I want."

"Oh, so I'm not one of your friends?" he feigned shock at her words. "That hurts, Kyoko."

"But you _are_ my friend," she protested with a pout. "It's just that you're… special."

"I'm special?" he instantly wished his voice had not sounded so eagerly hopeful when he spoke.

"Yea, all my other friends I can see all year 'round," she nodded, chucking one of the stones she held into the water with little success. "But you're only here in the summer. So you're different."

"Well, I guess you have a point," he relented, hiding the fact he was secretly pleased that she thought of him as special. "Anyway, you gotta get your hand level with the water when you throw it. And try to use just your wrist, not your whole arm."

She listened intently as he demonstrated the proper form for skipping stones. After a few more failed attempts, she managed to get two little skips from the next one she threw. Her hands lifted into the air in triumph as she let out a whoop of joy. He chuckled at her excitement and bent down to wrap his arms around her. She squealed as he lifted her into the air and the two of them laughed loudly while he swung her around in celebration.

* * *

"You gotta be careful when you catch them, Kuon," Kyoko warned in a whisper.

They were slowly creeping up on a butterfly that alighted on a nearby branch. It's wings were a bright blue that glittered in the sunlight and contrasted with the trim of black that ran around the edges. So far, it was unaware of the presence of the two children who sought to capture it. By the time it realized it was being hunted, it was too late. A pair of small hands cupped themselves around the insect, effectively trapping it in the space between the palms. It fluttered about wildly in it's prison, causing the captor to let out a small giggle at the sensation.

"See?" she said before releasing the butterfly and watching it flit away in a panicked escape. "You can catch 'em like this too and it won't hurt."

"I only ever learned to grab them by their wings with my fingers," Kuon admitted as he, too, followed the path of the butterfly's flight with his eyes. "I didn't know it hurt 'em."

"I don't know either," she said with a shrug. "But, I wouldn't like it if someone grabbed _my_ wings."

"But you don't have wings," he scratched at his head, puzzled.

"You don't know that for sure," she teased with a laugh.

"Well, I've never seen 'em," he clarified with a shrug.

"Maybe I'll show you one day when we've been friends longer," she suggested with a sly smile.

"Aw, c'mon, please?" he begged playfully, laughing as he did so. "You already said I was special."

"Hmm," she pretended to ponder, one finger placed on her lips. "I'll think about it."

Another butterfly landed nearby and he set his sights on catching it. Slowly, he approached the branch where it momentarily rested and raised both of his hands on either side of it. He swiftly closed them around the butterfly, but it escaped at the last moment. They watched as it flapped lazily upwards into the sky, as if mocking him for being too slow. He let out a groan of frustration that dissolved into laughter as Kyoko giggled mirthfully with him.

"Actually, I don't think I wanna see your wings after all," he stated with a grin. "You're much easier to catch when you're on the ground anyway."

She let out a startled shriek as he lunged for her and jumped away before his hands closed around her arm. Kyoko paused for the briefest moment to stick her tongue out at him before running off. He chased after her through the trees, shouting idle threats that he would catch her and keep her in a jar with a twig. The peals of their combined laughter echoed through the forest as they ran with reckless abandon.

* * *

"No, you can't go! It's _not fair_!" she screamed, stamping her small foot hard into the ground.

"Kyoko, I'm sorry but my Mom and Dad said they have to go back earlier than they thought," Kuon apologized earnestly.

"We were s'posed to have two more weeks," her face quickly became flushed with red and eyes were only just holding back a deluge of tears.

"I'm so sorry," he repeated, not knowing what else to say to comfort the small, shaking girl in front of him.

"Everyone always leaves me," she rubbed at her eyes as if she could pre-empt the tears by wiping them away before they fell. "First Dad, then Sho… and now you."

"Kyoko, I—"

His words died in his mouth when she looked up at him with sorrowful eyes. She was absolutely crushed and he had no idea how to make it better. The last thing he ever wanted was to be the reason she cried. But, there was nothing he could do or say to stop the inevitable from happening.

"What am I gonna do now?" she asked, sounding as if her heart was breaking with each word. "I'll be alone for the rest of the summer."

"I—I'll be back next year," he offered weakly

"That's so long from now. You could forget all about me by then," she whined.

"I'd never forget you. I promise," he said softly, stooping down to look at her from her eye-level. "I'll even ask my parents if we can stay a little longer next year, okay?"

She nodded absently with a sniffle, obviously not consoled by his vow.

"I guess you'd better go, then. You prob'ly got a lot of stuff to do before you l-leave," she choked out the last word, valiantly fighting back her tears.

Before he had a chance to tell her that he had the whole day to spend with her because his parents had gone back to his hometown for the day, she was gone. Her little feet ran as fast as they could, taking her far away from him and deep into the forest. Once he fully realized what happened, he was several moments behind her as he rushed into the trees in search of where she had gone.

He called her name frantically while wading through shrubs and various undergrowth, pushing the branches out of his face as his eyes scanned the dimly lit forest. Of course, she did not respond. It was ridiculous of him to even hope she would answer him after her reaction to the news of his impending departure. Still, he continued on, winding his way between the trees, searching high and low through their usual spots for any sign of her.

It took at least ten minutes before he realized he should have been focusing more on the 'high' portion of his search. She always climbed the trees when she was upset and had told him as much around the time when they first met. Continuing onward, his eyes darted from tree to tree, inspecting each branch for any sign of her little red sneakers. The task proved to be increasingly difficult and he slowed his pace after tripping over the sixth root that caught his feet while he was busy looking elsewhere.

When he reached the stream, he walked along the banks and peered up into every tree he encountered. His despair over not being able to find her was winning out and he was close to giving up when he spotted a bit of telltale red between some leaves in the distance. Slowly, he moved closer and saw her sitting on a long, thin branch that hung directly over the water. Streaks of tears stained her face and her body was shuddering silently as she gripped the branch tightly with both hands. His heart ached at the fact that their parting was a devastatingly accurate mirror of their first meeting.

He only had a brief period to lament, unfortunately, as he heard the branch snap and his heart plummeted to his feet. Her body lurched forward and her eyes opened wide in shock when she realized the sound came from where she was currently sitting. Another snap had the branch beginning to bend at a dangerous angle and the girl remained frozen with fear. He was too far and the realization made him instantly sick to his stomach. A piercing pain shot through his head at that moment and he winced. Realizing he took his eyes off her, he fought to ignore the pain and look back to where his friend was in danger. The branch would surely break, sending her headfirst into the large rocks jutting up from the stream below.

 _'Kyoko, look out!'_ he shouted, only barely registering that the words did not come from his mouth.

In that same instant, his breath was stolen from his lungs as time literally froze around him. The wind that previously rustled through the trees came to an abrupt halt and every leaf, branch and blade of grass stopped in the midst of their movements. He saw that Kyoko realized the change at the same time he did and she looked at him, fear and confusion carved into her face. The threat of the branch that was about to give way beneath her was strangely avoided as it now hung in the air as if supported only by the fact that everything around them stopped moving entirely.

 _'Quick, climb down!'_

He still had no idea how he was calling to her without using his mouth but he went with it since she nodded as if she could hear him. Kuon watched Kyoko frantically scramble backwards on the branch and clamber awkwardly down the trunk as quickly as she could. She stood unsteadily, surrounded by perfectly still foliage, and her whole body was trembling from head to toe. Kuon swiftly walked over to her, wrapping her small frame in his arms as she whimpered.

"My head hurts, Kuon," she complained, her voice cracking.

"Mine too," he spoke finally.

"What's going on?" she looked around at the unnatural stillness that surrounded them.

"I don't know, but we should probably get you home."

"Okay," she said quietly with a nod.

They were unable to take their usual shortcut route through the dense shrubs because every plant around them stood stock still all the way to the tips of their leaves. As such, it made pushing said leaves aside a task that was much more difficult than it typically was. Taking the winding path that led them out into the town, they emerged to find the usually bustling area at a complete standstill.

People. Animals. Automobiles. Nothing moved.

The two of them stood in horrified awe as they took in the scene before them. Kyoko stared blankly for several silent moments before tears began to spill from her eyes. Kuon looked down at her when he felt her body start to quiver beside him. He quickly stooped down into a squat, pulling her into a hug in an effort to comfort her. However, no amount of shushing and cooing could soothe her tears and she cried quietly as he held her.

"Did we do this?" she asked timidly, almost afraid of what his answer would be.

"I—I think so." he stuttered, taking a deep breath to gain some semblance of calm. "I think we've both Awakened."

"How do we make it stop?" the question came out as a half sob.

"I have no idea," he answered truthfully.

"I don't like this," she sniffled, looking down at her scuffed shoes. "I want to go home."

Offering her his hand, he led her along the familiar streets back to her house. Both of them tried their best to look straight ahead and ignore everything around them. At one point, they resorted to walking down the middle of the usually busy road. Walking along the sidewalk quickly became disconcerting as they had to maneuver around people frozen like statues. With each person they passed, Kyoko became more and more uneasy and her grip on his hand would tighten in apprehension.

In reality, the walk to her house only took several minutes. However, it felt like an eternity had passed as they made their way through the eerily quiet town to the outskirts. When they reached the deck behind her house, both of them collapsed onto the wooden planks in a combination of emotional and physical exhaustion. Kuon took deep breaths and massaged his fingers into his temples, begging the pain in his head to abate. Kyoko rubbed her hands along her arms, almost obsessively, and looked at the unmoving trees behind the house.

"Are we gonna get in trouble?" she asked so quietly, he almost did not hear her.

"Maybe," he said solemnly with a slow nod. "The Academy'll at least wanna study us, I bet."

"What do we do?"

He wracked his brain for a solution. Sure, he knew enough about Awakenings at this point to realize what happened, but nothing prepared him for a situation such as the one in which they currently found themselves. The pain in his head doubled in intensity as he scrabbled for something, anything he could remember that would be helpful.

"My Dad always used to say that the mind can do powerful things when it's convinced that anything is possible," he suggested with an unsure frown.

"How's that supposed to help?" she asked doubtfully.

"Maybe… maybe we should try to forget. Forget that this happened and," he hesitated with a gulp. "And we forget about each other. That way, even if the Academy thinks they've found us, we'll have no memory of anything or anyone that was there."

"But I don't want to forget you," she clutched at her head, obviously still in pain.

"I don't either," he agreed softly, reaching out a hand to run it gently through her hair in consolation. "But, what other choice do we have? Lucky for me, I'll be leaving town tomorrow. You'll still be here. They'll find you and I don't know what'll happen when they do. You're Awakened now. We both are and we did something that's probably never been seen before. They'll wanna know how you did it."

"I always wanted to Awaken," she said quietly in a shaky voice. "Not like this, though."

"Me too, Kyoko," he soothed. "Me too."

She dropped her tiny hands to her sides and clenched them into fists, squeezing her eyes tightly shut. Her head nodded once, as if agreeing with whatever thought was currently going through her head. He wished he could hear what she was thinking; it would surely be a more pleasant sound than the crippling emptiness he was picking up from everyone else around them. When she opened her eyes to look at him again, they were clear and determined.

"How do we do it?" she asked calmly.

"We have to believe, I guess," he said, his voice sounding considerably less agitated than he actually was. "Believe that we want to forget."

"Will it work?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "But we can try."

She rubbed the back of her hand across her wet eyes and nodded in understanding. Then, she held up one hand, pulling all of her fingers together into a fist except one. Her pinky poked out and pointed straight at him. He looked down at it dubiously.

"Then, we pinky-swear," she offered. "We swear to forget everything."

He could not believe her bravery in the face of such a frightening ordeal. Then again, he should have known after all of the time he spent with her. This was exactly something she would do. He mirrored her hand with his opposing one and wrapped his pinky around hers. They stared into each other's eyes for what they guessed would probably be the last time and then closed them. Their brows furrowed in unison as they both focused on their task.

 _'Forget. I have to forget. I swear to forget. None of this ever happened,'_ Kyoko chanted silently over and over again to herself.

Across from her, Kuon intoned something similar. However, he added something they had not initially agreed upon. She would probably hurl one of her deceptively powerful fists into his shoulder if she found out, but he cared more about her future than he did about any form of retaliation.

 _'I have to forget about Kyoko. I'll take the blame for this to protect her. I swear to forget. None of this was her fault.'_

He felt the finger curled in his slowly pull away and he snapped his eyes open to see a vaguely familiar little girl tipping backwards with her eyes closed. Kuon had only a moment to wonder what he was doing there with her before he noticed she had fainted and he reached out to steady her before she fell over. She slumped heavily in his arms and he struggled to carry her to the tiny bench he spotted beside the backdoor to the house.

Arranging her limbs as best as he could so that she would be comfortable, he laid her across the bench and silently took his leave. His thoughts were all scattered and fuzzy. A haze had settled in his mind, making it difficult for him to properly process anything. He had no idea how he got there or who the girl was, but he hoped she would wake up soon. The errant thought that it was her house and she would undoubtedly be safe floated around in the back of his mind like a phantom before disappearing entirely. As if on auto-pilot, his feet led him back towards the town.

When he got nearer, he noticed people moving around slowly in confusion. Some of them looked like they had only just woken up from falling asleep at the wheels of their cars which had stopped in the middle of the street. Suddenly, a deafening noise in his mind blared through his head with no prior warning. Looking at the the people recovering around him, he managed to figure out that he was, somehow, hearing their thoughts. He stared at the recovering town, walking slowly along the street, avoiding eye contact with the bewildered people he passed. Thus, he started piecing together what must have happened.

And the weight of what he now believed he had done pressed itself firmly onto his shoulders.

* * *

 **WELL, THERE YOU HAVE IT: This chapter was actually difficult to write in a way I wasn't expecting. I had to take several breaks while writing the last portion as I felt empathetically sad for our protagonists. It was weird, but I guess I'm doing something right if that's the case. Anyhow, I hope you all enjoy the dual present of this chapter and a new one-shot for RenxKyoko week. I hope to see you here again in two weeks. The 'where do we go from here' chapter to follow will certainly be a challenge.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	19. Separation

**CHAPTER 18: SEPARATION**

The two of them were crouched, still as statues and staring at the pond when the last of the memories faded away to leave clear sparkling water behind. The rose they held had long since fallen, forgotten, to the ground and their hands clutched at each other in a tight grip. Ren had an apology on his the tip of his tongue, but kept his mouth decisively shut. Nothing he could say at that moment would be helpful, anyway.

They had just learned that everything they thought they knew was a lie. Not only that, it was a lie perpetrated by their own minds. A lie they purposely told themselves in a moment of desperation and fear. But, for him, the lie was twofold. He knowingly accepted the blame for everything that happened without ever telling her of his plans. That made him feel even worse.

He looked up only to realize she had been staring at him. Her eyes were blazing into his and he could only imagine what she was thinking. She probably hated him now. He would not blame her if she did.

"Kyoko, I'm s—"

Before he could finish his sentence, she vanished. He looked around in surprise, half tempted to search for her when he knew where she had gone. Leaving her mind, he returned to the real world to find her still sitting beside him on the couch, the same expression on her face. He was about to start his apology anew when her fist collided harshly with his shoulder. A yelp escaped his mouth without his consent and he grabbed at the area that was now stinging with his other hand.

"Why the—"

"No one asked you to bear it all on your own, you know!"

"I know. I'm sorry. I just couldn't help but feel responsible," he apologized with a wince. "If I hadn't caused you to run from me, none of this would've even happened."

She punched him again.

"Ow! Again, why?"

"Because that is so very like you to take all the blame and it wasn't even necessary. We could've both easily forgotten and no one would have been any wiser."

"Until right around when the Academy takes you in because they thought you had an Awakening in the library," he pointed out logically. "Only, they'd be right and I wouldn't be here to help you. So, in a strange way, it actually worked out better than we planned."

Her hand went for his shoulder again and he flinched. This time, it was only a light shove.

"You have a point," she conceded. "But I hate to know you went through so many years of agony and depression because you thought you had to protect me."

He shook his head once in defiance.

"Had I the chance to do it again, I doubt I would've chosen differently."

"Yea, well, here's hoping we never get the opportunity to find out for sure," she grumbled at his audacious heroism. "Sorry I punched you."

He chuckled, "I'll live."

Kyoko fiddled nervously with her hands in her lap. Her head bobbed from side to side as she seemingly mulled something over in her head. When she looked up at him again, he could see the question in her eyes, so he waited patiently for her to voice it.

"Um… would it be weird if I said I missed you? I mean, we only just got our memories back, so I don't know how I could possibly miss something I never remembered but—"

He put a hand over hers and nodded slowly.

"It's not weird. I understand exactly what you mean," he reassured her. "I missed you too."

She left his hand where it rested on hers and smiled gratefully, leaning against him with a breath of relief. They had literally made up for lost time over the course of a few hours. It was the strangest set of circumstances, and one that was not easy to articulate in any way that made sense. Reconciling the people from their past with the ones from the present took no small amount of mental gymnastics, especially for Kyoko. The man who sat beside her was so very different from the sunny, grinning, cheeky boy she once knew. And yet, there were definite traces of his old personality that peeked through every so often. It was nice to have him back, regardless of the form he took.

"So, now what?"

"What do you mean?" he tilted his head slightly in query.

"Well, we know the truth and I'm guessing I probably have full use of my ability. But, what do we do now?"

He cleared his throat and looked askance at her.

"I, uh… I thought that would've been fairly obvious."

She saw the expression on his face when he said it; his eyes downcast and his jaw grimly set. There was no guessing required on her part as to what he was going to suggest. Kyoko looked aghast, all color draining from her face. Pulling her hands out from under his, she clutched them tightly to her chest and leaned away from him.

"No."

"Kyoko, it's the only way we can be safe," he urged. "We have to separate. What if the same thing happens again?"

"No," she repeated, shaking her head furiously. "No, I can't lose you again! Not when I just got you back."

"You won't be losing me. I'll still be here. You just have to be… somewhere I'm not. At least until things change."

"And when will that be, huh?" she asked, incensed. "Two years from now? Twenty years from now?"

Her breathing had grown ragged and an ache spread in her chest. What had been a dream come true was quickly turning into a nightmare. Had they really spent several weeks learning the truth about each other only to be driven apart again because some random authoritative body thought they should be studied like a sample in a petri dish? The whole thing started to feel a lot like ten years ago and it scared her. It scared her a lot.

"Kyoko, hey," she heard a voice say as her pulse pounded in her ears.

A pair of warm hands wrapped around either side of her head and a blurry face appeared before her that pleaded with her to listen to them.

"Kyoko, you need to breathe. You're stronger than this. Don't let it win."

The voice was right. The panic was winning and she needed to control it before she turned the entire apartment complex into a temporary wax museum. A peaceful calm suddenly washed over her, erasing the anxiety like it was never there in the first place. It was like the comfort of a soft blanket and a hot cup of tea on a cold night.

Ren's face came into focus, worry was written all over his features as his eyes scanned her. She reached for his wrists and slowly pulled his hands away from her face with a nod to signal that she was alright. He let out the breath he was holding and ran a hand through his hair, clearly relieved. But, she knew she had not pulled herself out of that panic attack.

"How did you do that?"

"Inquisitors are required to study the basics of Healing Telepathy. Comes in handy when you have to do an extraction on an extremely jittery person."

She shook her head with a sigh.

"Look at me. I can't even keep myself in check," she lamented. "How am I going to do this without you?"

"You'll learn your limits and how to control them," Ren soothed. "But, you should be free to learn them on your own and not at the hands of a researcher in a lab coat."

"It's not fair."

She sounded an awful lot like her younger self when she said it.

"I know it isn't and I don't want this any more than you do," his tone was gentle and he chose his words carefully to avoid riling her up again. "But, do you have any idea what they'll do to us when they found out what we've done. What you can do?"

"We'll be glorified lab rats, I know, but—"

He put up a hand and stopped her from finishing her sentence. She needed to know the full extent of what she would be getting herself in to. Technically, divulging such information was strictly forbidden by the laws of the Assembly. But, in this moment, those laws could go do something unspeakable to themselves for all he cared. Swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat, he began to explain.

"I'm required to attend Assembly meetings because I'm a potential candidate and I've… seen things. People paraded in front of the Assembly like oddities when Research has made new discoveries about how certain abilities work or when someone displays an ability that is varies from the norm. One of the other candidates told me they toured a floor in the hospital last year that had rooms where they do stress testing on people with high level abilities to find their limits. He said the walls were padded so no one could hear the screams."

Kyoko paled at that, her stomach suddenly churning tumultuously. She had been in one of those rooms not long ago with Kanae. Her friend never told her what they were actually used for and she never thought to ask. It was her hope that Kanae was unaware as to the rooms' true purpose as well.

"They claim it's all in the name of better understanding the phenomenon of humans having abilities like this. That would be fine, if they actually treated them like humans," he fisted one hand against his knee, clenching it tightly. "I don't want that for you."

"Why don't you leave too? We can go together."

"I can't. I'm too high profile to just disappear without anyone noticing. And, if I did anything to get myself terminated, I would most likely be sent to Research as a subject for study."

"But you're not _you_ ," she blurted out before she realized the sentence made little sense. "I mean, Ren Tsuruga doesn't really exist. If you disappeared, how would they track you down?

She had a point, he admitted to himself. Unfortunately, it would not be as easy as she suggested. Even staying hidden the way he currently was, he still had a bigger target on his back.

"That's true, but I'm already identified as having a high-level ability and they'd try harder to track me down than they would a young woman who was dismissed for not having an ability at all. Besides, I still couldn't go with you. They'd know that we left together and we'd both be at risk."

Ren looked at her with beseeching eyes, imploring her to understand.

"Kyoko, I may be cleverly hidden under the very nose of the people we're trying to avoid. But, the price I paid for that was my freedom. While I'm glad it gave me the opportunity to find you again, I wouldn't wish this life on anyone."

Her shoulders sagged in defeat and she nodded in understanding.

"Why does this have to be so difficult?" she asked.

"Because, at some point over the years, many Academies forgot their original mission of helping Augmenteds and, instead, sought to profit from them. Money talks and governmental funding is a hard voice to silence."

It was a sad truth that they both knew all too well. It was the same truth that had put them in this terrible predicament in the first place. Kyoko floundered, unable to come up with any kind of plan. Her mouth opened and closed silently several times as she tried to voice any idea that came to mind, but they were all incomplete.

"I don't even know where to go," she admitted finally. "I probably can't even go home."

"Don't go home," Ren said firmly. "Don't even stay anywhere in this country. Find a place where the Academy is less aggressive. Maybe you can find somewhere you can learn to control your ability. Leave tonight or first thing in the morning. Go where even I can't find you."

"Kuon—" she began to plead.

"I'm serious. If something should happen and someone puts together that we're connected, they'll try to extract that information out of me. I don't want to be the reason you get caught."

"But, how am I supposed to do all of this? Just up and move? I barely have any money to travel as it is."

At this, Ren abruptly excused himself and disappeared into another room. She could hear the sound of a drawer opening and clothes being shoved a side. When he returned, he had a small wooden box in his hand. Picking up his keys from where they lay on the table near the door, he brought it over to where she sat, selected a smaller key from the ring and unlocked it. Turning it towards her, she peered inside and gasped at what lay within. Rolls of bills filled the box to the brim. While she could not accurately estimate how much was in there, she knew it had to be a lot.

"It's my emergency stash. I made it just in case my identity was compromised and I was forced to run. I want you to have it."

"Kuon, I can't take this."

"You can and you will," he insisted, leaving no opportunity for her to contradict him. "My salary is more than enough for me to refill this box from what I have saved in the bank. I want you to be able to go wherever you need to without struggling to find a way to pay for it. Let me at least do this for you."

"You're already doing plenty by sticking around this place," she grimaced as she slowly took the bills from the box and tucked them carefully away in her purse.

She noticed an old watch with a worn black leather band sitting at the bottom of the box once she transferred all of the money out of it. It looked somewhat familiar but her brain was so overloaded by that point, she could not properly recall why. Curious, she gingerly pulled it out with two fingers as well and looked at Ren with a questioning glance.

"You can take that too," he encouraged. "I was only hanging on to it to remind me of why I made the choice to come here. I haven't worn it since, well… you know. I don't even know if it still works. It hasn't been wound in ten years and the face is still cracked from that one game of tag we played."

"Why are you giving it to me?"

He scratched idly at the back of his neck; partially out of embarrassment and partially to give him time to think of his next words. With a shrug, he closed the box he still held and placed it on the floor.

"Something to remember me by," he said as casually as he could. "At least the 'me' I used to be. Maybe, in a way, it'll be like I'm always with you even when I can't be."

"Oh," she breathed, her eyes suddenly brimming with unshed tears. "Thank you. I wish I had something to give you in return."

"Don't worry about it," he assured. "Having our memories back is enough for me."

She nodded and put the watch in her purse as well, smiling though her lips trembled.

"I'm happy to have them too," she said, her voice shaky. "In spite of all of this, I'm glad I decided to do this now."

"Me too."

They sat in silence and stared at each other for several minutes; each trying to memorize the other's face as best they could. They would soon be cruelly split apart again and this was the only time they had left to indulge in creating one last memory. Kyoko broke away first, looking towards the door.

"I should probably go," she said, her voice laden with reluctance.

His agreement was almost robotic in cadence.

"Yes, it is late and you should be back in the dormitories before someone realizes you are missing."

"Yeah."

Kyoko stood slowly, realizing too late that her knees were inexplicably wobbly. He stood as well and reached out to steady her by placing his hands on her shoulders. Before he could withdraw them, she leaned into him and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, burying her face in his shirt. Her shoulders quivered as she cried a few silent sobs against him. He brought his arms down to protectively encircle her and his hand soothingly rubbed at her back. His head bent down and he pressed his nose into her hair, and tightly closed his eyes. Kyoko was right; it really was not fair at all.

She pulled away slightly and wiped hastily at her cheeks with one hand. Her sorrowful eyes held his as he ran a hand through her hair before stopping to rest along her jaw. Kyoko let out a world-weary sigh.

"I don't want this," her voice cracked with every word. "I wish there was a better way."

His hand tightened its grip on her face, only marginally, but enough to convey the seriousness of his next words.

"I don't either, but you are strong, Kyoko. You're going to walk out that door and you're going to do whatever it takes to survive."

"I know," she nodded. "But, I also know my heart's going to break the second I do."

"I know," he echoed. "Mine will too."

He bent forward and gently placed his lips to her forehead. It was the softest, briefest touch, but it warmed her from head to toe, forcing her eyes shut at the sensation. When she opened them, he was staring, searching her face for a reaction. Her cheeks colored the slightest shade of pink and she looked away briefly before focusing back on him.

Backing away towards the door, she summoned the most resolute expression she could manage, dipping into the reserves of her confidence to raise her chin valiantly. She would be brave. She had to be.

"Goodbye Kuon."

She forced her tone to stay even as she spoke those last words to him. His voice was barely above a whisper when he replied, but it was as deep as it was quiet and there was a rasp to it that had not been there before. It sent a shudder through her that simultaneously squeezed her heart and burned at her eyes.

"Goodbye Kyoko."

* * *

Kyoko never appreciated the convenience of convenience stores until she stopped at one on her way to her apartment. It was late and mostly everything else was closed, but she was still able to buy what she figured she would need for her travels. Picking up a few essentials, she passed the snack aisle and spotted packaging she knew all too well. With a small smile, she grabbed three of the items and added them to the others in her basket.

Back in her apartment, she rifled through the kitchen drawers until she found the scissors she knew were in there. Though they were not the best, she hoped they would do the job. She stared at her hair in the mirror, running a hand through the end of her long locks. There were several false starts as she considered just how short she wanted it. Frustrated with her indecision, she eventually just started cutting to force herself to commit.

Chunks of hair fell silently into the bathroom sink below her as she carefully snipped off the lengths. Once it was above her shoulders, she did her best to even out the ends. It was not the most professional looking haircut, but she hoped the right use of styling product would make that less noticeable. At some point she would get it properly cut and maybe she would change the color as well.

It was odd staring at herself in the mirror. Her now shortened hair feathered outward around her face, giving her a completely different look. She almost did not recognize herself and wondered if Kuon felt similarly when he changed his appearance. Unfortunately, thinking about him was more than she could manage at the moment and she shook her head. Kyoko had tried her best to compartmentalize the pain of their parting from the moment she left his apartment. She would have to deal with it later. For now, there was work to be done.

After spending a little over an hour experimenting with hair wax, she came up with a spiky style that nicely complemented her new cut. As she turned her head back and forth in the mirror, admiring her handiwork, she thought about how much she would have loved to show Kanae. Her openmouthed wonder at her own reflection soon became a frown.

Kanae would never be able to know what happened to her. Not when she was so closely involved with the Academy hospital and Dr. Asami. The last thing Kyoko wanted was for her friend to get into any trouble because of her. As much as it hurt to leave Kanae behind without so much as a word of goodbye, the less the she knew about the situation, the better it was for her in the long run. If there ever came a time when she could return to this place and explain, Kyoko hoped the woman would understand.

Sleep would not be an option that night, she knew. Paranoia had already crept into her mind and wrapped its icy fingers of fear around her thoughts and she needed distractions. So, after packing, she cleaned. First, she focused on tidying up the hair from where it fell in the bathroom, being careful to place it in a bag that she would dump elsewhere on her way off of Academy grounds. Then, she proceeded to clean the rest of the apartment from top to bottom. It was something the 'old Kyoko' would do; politely cleaning a place she was planning to leave. Truthfully, she had not yet decided what exactly the 'new Kyoko' would be like, but she doubted she would have the luxury of cleaning every place she was running from in the future.

Once the sun was just peeking over the horizon, painting over the deep blues in the sky with brilliant shades of orange and yellow, she quietly slipped out of her apartment, making sure to leave the door unlocked and the keys on the table. It was going to be a bit of a walk to the train station. Still, she had planned for that and, by the time they realized she was not showing up for her appointment that morning, she would already be on a train headed out of the country. The rest of the building was quiet at that time of the morning and she made her way through the lobby without a soul noticing her. Situating her bag as comfortably as possible over her shoulder, she walked out into the crisp morning air.

* * *

When Sho opened his door several hours later, he found a small, brown paper bag sitting on the ground before him. Thinking it was some prank, he nudged it a few times with his shoe before he crouched down and used his fingers to unroll the top and look inside. He peeked carefully into the opening, half expecting it to explode or for something to jump out of it. Thankfully, neither of those scenarios happened. Inside the bag were cups of pudding; his favorite from since he was a child. A wide grin spread across his face at the sight and he eagerly reached inside to pull out the cups and the plastic spoon that accompanied them.

This was a treat he was unable to indulge in since he and Kyoko stopped living together. When they were younger, she would often bring him one after the two of them had a petty argument. He never understood why she would always apologize when, more often than not, he was the one who started the fight in the first place. When they moved away from their hometown, he became too prideful to purchase it for himself—as he assumed it looked rather childish—and the job fell to Kyoko, who did it without question. After frustrating days or during long nights spent studying for exams, she would leave a cup on the desk in his room and disappear just as silently as she came.

There was no doubt in his mind as to who left the bag on his doorstep. The only question he had was why she did it. Exams were still a ways off so it could not be that. But, if it was an apology, what had she done to warrant giving him _three_ cups instead of one?

* * *

A few days later, Ren returned home from a grueling first day back at work to find a small, rectangular package waiting for him in front of his apartment door. Picking it up, he saw it was from a shop on the other side of the city. He was suspicious about it since he had not ordered anything recently, but it was clearly addressed to him. Taking it inside, he set it on the kitchen counter, where it sat forgotten for several hours.

Once he had changed and eaten some semblance of a meal, he finally remembered the neglected box. Retrieving it, he turned it over in his hand, looking at the neatly wrapped paper that covered whatever was contained within. Once it was unwrapped and several wads of tissue paper were removed from the opened box, he found a stone colored a painfully recognizable shade of deep blue and a small piece of paper folded into quarters. He hastily opened the paper and found a short, type-written note inside. He sucked in a shuddering breath, his fingers tightening around the stone it held and his other hand pressing the note to his chest. It was only one sentence. Just six little words. But, they meant the world to him.

 _'For when your days are cloudy.'_

* * *

 **OH, I'M SORRY, DID YOU THINK WE WERE DONE WITH THE FEELS?! Honestly, I could've ended the story right here, but I feel like you'd all mutiny and put my head on a pike if there wasn't at least _some_ sort of resolution (and probably some hot, mouth-on-mouth action. Because who doesn't love that, am I right?). See you all again in two weeks!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	20. Reflections

**CHAPTER 19: REFLECTIONS**

Kyoko shoved the last bit of her sandwich into her mouth, quickly licking the lingering crumbs from the tip of her finger as she clipped through the bustling train station. A rhythmic clicking followed behind her as she tugged along her small, black rolling suitcase; a necessary replacement after her previous baggage met with an untimely demise at a turnstile several destinations prior. It was a far sight better than its predecessor, she decided, with wheels that fully rotated and a hard, plastic shell. Furthermore, it complemented her new look quite well.

Gone were the vibrant colors and soft silhouettes of her previous style. They were replaced by muted tones and darker shades that accentuated her figure in fitted, fashion-forward tailoring. Her previous youthful appearance had given way to a more polished and mature look to match the sleek halo of chestnut hair that now crowned her head.

The Kyoko who had left the Academy in the wee hours of the morning almost a week before was no more. She had been replaced by a savvy, well-travelled woman who had to learn a handful of difficult lessons at an accelerated pace. Her innocent pragmatism gradually dissolved into wary cynicism. After hopping from one place to another and dealing with personalities that ranged from apathetically unhelpful to obstinately rude, she had been misdirected, waylaid and scammed.

She expertly dodged an oncoming person who was distracted by their chattering companion. Pivoting swiftly to one side, they brushed past her without a backwards glance to apologize or see if she was alright. The murmur of voices around her bounced off the stone walls, pierced intermittently by the politely melodious chime that preceded the regular announcements of arriving and departing trains. These sounds had become little more than faint background noises to her as of late after spending her days connecting from one city to another. By this point, her ears only perked up for the boarding call for her next train or whenever any special bulletins were announced.

Thus far, none of those bulletins included her name or any mention of a potential fugitive from her home country. Her stomach would often find itself in her shoes and her pulse would resound loudly through her head whenever those announcements came through the speakers. The joints in her fingers had taken to creaking every so often when she flexed them after habitually gripping her baggage with white knuckles each time she had to endure one. Being constantly on edge as she was had been draining and she gallantly fought off the ever-present fatigue that threatened to swallow her whole. But, she only had one more leg left on her journey and she was determined to stay alert to see it through.

Kyoko's plan was that she had no plan. With very little time to prepare her exit, she had only a few options available to her when it came to deciding where she would ultimately go. While she had minimal knowledge of a few places she could potentially try, she also realized that any of those places would be too obvious. Having never been a fugitive before, she figured her best bet was to be as unpredictable as possible.

If _she_ did not know where she would be going, there was little chance the Academy could possibly figure it out. So, she picked her destinations randomly. With a printed train route map in hand, she closed her eyes and pointed blindly to a place on the page. Upon opening them, she would find a connection to the destination closest to wherever her finger landed.

The most difficult part was planning routes that involved the least amount of documentation. While there was little choice but to travel using her own passport, the relationships between several of the surrounding countries made it so that any successful entry into one allowed a traveller to pass into the neighboring country without any further processing. By the time she reached Syrigma's capital city, she was able to choose freely from anywhere in the three adjacent nations to determine her final stop. Ultimately, her finger chose Aves, a small town in Gennaia.

Her pace slowed as she approached the ramp to take her to the platform where the express train to Harpe, Gennaia's largest metropolitan area, would be boarding. The bright yellow and black sign that hung above her said she was in the right place. She turned and followed the colored line on the ground that directed her to the platform, the heels of her boots clacking against the cold tile floor and echoing in the brightly lit hallway.

' _Just a few more steps,'_ she thought, urging herself onward while tugging the suitcase more fiercely than she had been. ' _Just a few more steps, and two more trains, and then…'_

And then… what? Her mind had convinced itself that the culmination of her travels would be the end of her problems. The reality was the exact opposite. She had to start a new life in an unknown place with only a scant, conversational knowledge of the local language. An apartment, or lodging of some sort, would need to be secured and, of course, she required a steady source of income. While she tried to be fairly prudent with spending the money Kuon had given her, she figured that the amount remaining would only last her for another four weeks. And that was only because of the high exchange value of her currency.

To say nothing of the fact that all of this needed to be done under an assumed name.

But, she was strong, she told herself. She could do this. Of course, telling herself and actually believing it were two completely different things. Still, she had already committed to the choice she made. She had no other option but to continue onward. Thinking about what lay ahead of her was only making her current task more difficult so she pushed it out of her mind for the time being. If she let herself get worked up over it, there was a good chance she would trigger her ability and that was the last thing she needed.

So, she did what she did best and calmly ignored her feelings as if they were not rabid, snarling beasts waiting just outside the confines of her emotional sanctuary to devour her. There were no nearby trees to climb. There was no Sho to distract her with minor annoyances. There was no Kanae to talk her down and help her address her feelings. And, there was no Kuon to soothe her mind and her heart through telepathy and tenderly spoken words. Thinking about any of that would reduce her to a blubbering mess cowering in the privacy of a bathroom stall—if she was lucky to make it that far before breaking down.

Her reverie was broken, much to her relief, by the arrival of the train at the platform. Once she was settled into her seat, Kyoko let out a quiet sigh. She caught her reflection in the window she sat beside, her eyes tracing the lines of her own face. She looked as exhausted as she felt. Not even the makeup she wore could completely conceal it.

Looking away, she focused on the passing scenery instead as the train began to pick up speed. Individual trees and buildings soon began to blur into stripes of green, brown and grey against the purples and oranges of the sun setting in the sky. Knowing it was the same sun that could be seen by the people she cared about was little comfort. She was now the furthest from home she had ever been. Far away from everyone who ever mattered to her; and it was probably going to stay that way.

"Welcome to the rest of your life, Kyoko," she whispered to herself.

* * *

"It was only supposed to be a quick examination. Why would she just leave like that?"

"She already had to go through enough just by being here. Add an unrequited love and finding out her mother kept a huge secret from her for years on top of all that and I'm not surprised she decided to disappear. I can't imagine anyone having to bear all of that on their own."

Professor Ogata sat across from Dr. Asami in her office, his hands folded in his lap. It was an impromptu visit between his classes because she told him she needed someone to talk to. Wholly unable to deny a request from his best friend, he hustled over to her building once he had a free moment. He listened to her woes, ready to dispense whatever advice or tough love the situation needed. It was a sort of ritual that had been established between them from the onset of their friendship all those years ago.

"I wish she would've at least said something," she complained. "Though, I suppose it was my fault for implying that she didn't have a choice, but she could've let me know it made her uncomfortable and I would've cancelled it."

"You had to have known she was uncomfortable, Haru," he pointed out. "She wasn't exactly reserved about voicing her displeasure at being here."

She relented with a sigh, acknowledging the truth in his words.

"I know. I could've been more understanding. I knew she wasn't happy about this whole thing but I just forged ahead like it didn't matter. I'd love to be able to find out where she ran off to, if only to apologize, but I can't imagine the Academy would have any interest in tracking anyone who doesn't have an ability."

"Well, at the very least, I hope you've learned something from all this. No point in lamenting the past if you can't turn it into a lesson for the future."

"Wise words as usual, Hiroaki," a third voice said from the door to Dr. Asami's office.

"Takenori, I didn't think I'd see you again so soon. Come in!"

The man smiled warmly and walked into the room.

"My work takes me everywhere just about as much as it keeps me in one place. You've happened to catch me during one of my stationary periods."

"I can go, Haru," Professor Ogata offered, shifting in his seat. "I should probably start preparing for my next class anyway."

"No, don't leave on account of me," the other man assured. "I was just passing through and stopped on my way to say hello. You can carry on with whatever it was you were talking about."

"Oh, Hiro and I were just having a chat about my little runaway," she casually explained.

"The Mogami girl?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

He gave her an unconcerned shrug. "Lucky guess based on your distress over her last week."

Dr. Asami nodded in understanding before prattling on with her story.

"Well, she never showed up for her appointment with the AADU research team and no one's heard from her since."

"I see," he muttered quietly, stroking idly at his chin. "That's a real shame for Jouji."

"Yes, he was quite disappointed. I didn't realize you knew him. From what I understood, he was keeping a low profile."

"Oh, he and I go way back. I was surprised when I ran into him one day and learned he was managing the research team here. He was understandably tight-lipped about it, but I suppose he made an exception for an old friend."

A muted cough interrupted their conversation.

"Haruki, I really should go. Call me later if you want to get dinner, okay?"

"Oh, of course. I'll see you later!" she waved at him distractedly.

Professor Ogata quickly got up from his seat and exited the office, leaving his friend and Sawara behind to continue chatting. Paying no attention as he turned into the hallway to leave, he blurted out a quick apology to Kanae when he bumped into her. Confused by the man's behavior and the odd emotions she was reading from him, she watched him curiously as he walked away from her down the hall.

Kanae counted herself lucky that the Professor was so preoccupied as he surely would have noticed the fact that she was conspicuously eavesdropping outside of Dr. Asami's door. She leaned against the stark white wall behind her and breathed a sigh of relief. It was a quieter time of day for this wing of the building and she figured she could get away with sneaking around without being noticed, but she had not counted on so many visitors coming and going from the office itself. The graceless dodge into an empty room she was forced to execute when she saw Sawara walk past had already spiked her adrenaline.

All she really wanted was to hear some word—some explanation—for why Kyoko took off without telling anyone. Sure, the young woman had acted a little strangely prior to her departure, but the stress she was under from having to stay at the Academy against her will seemed to have more to do with that than anything else. At least, that's what she wanted to believe. Kyoko always claimed that they were friends. But, what friend disappears without at least giving the other a heads-up about it?

It worried Kanae, to say the least. There were only a few reasons why someone would cut and run without alerting others. It was obvious that Kyoko did not want to be found and the churning feeling she got in her gut the more she thought about it told her the reason was probably not as innocuous as she initially thought. Wherever her friend had vanished to, she fervently hoped that the trouble she was trying to avoid did not follow her.

* * *

Yukihito Yashiro had taken to observing his ward whenever the younger man plodded along ahead of him while walking to his next appointment. To everyone else, he still behaved as the consummate professional everyone expected him to be. However, Yukihito could tell that a significant change had taken place. The sparkling smile he habitually plastered on his face was dull around the edges. His eyes seemed haunted and hollow whenever he looked anywhere else but directly at someone to speak with them. He walked with a lingering stride and his speech pattern was noticeably slower; almost as if he was trying to incrementally elongate his working days so that he would have to spend less time alone at the end of them.

And then there was the stone. A peculiar, dark blue stone now perpetually lived in his pockets. He would take it out, whenever they were alone and just… hold it. Sometimes it was clutched tightly in one fist and, other times, he would hold it loosely in his fingers, idly stroking his thumb along the flattened sides. Then, he would slide it carefully back into his pocket as if nothing ever happened. At first, he wondered if Ren had suddenly developed a fidgeting habit. However, in all the years that he spent around the Inquisitor, he never knew him to be a fidgety person.

When he carefully prodded the man about his recent behavior, he got nothing but defiant denials for his trouble. According to him, everything was 'just fine' and there was nothing for him to worry about. Granted, that only served to make him worry more. Every proclamation that nothing was amiss strengthened his suspicion that something was, in fact, very wrong.

To his credit, he suspected that a certain young woman was responsible for Ren's change. Considering the fact that her presence had also influenced him—albeit in a more positive manner—it made sense that her absence would as well. What he could not understand was why. The last thing he had heard was that Kyoko was to be dismissed from the Academy once it was confirmed that she had no ability. None of that precluded Ren from visiting her outside of work if he so chose.

"I just don't understand it," he complained aloud to Lory one afternoon when they were alone in his office. "It's like I'm working with a completely different person."

"He certainly hasn't been himself," the Chief murmured in agreement.

"But he won't tell me what's wrong. I can't help him if I don't know what he even needs help _with_."

"Is he asking you for help?"

"No," he admitted somewhat sheepishly.

"Then, perhaps, it's for the best if we stay out of this," Lory suggested. "He'll have to decide for himself when he's ready to come to one of us."

The other man let out a frustrated breath, his brow furrowed and hands clenched into fists.

"You don't see him every day like I do. It's almost heartbreaking to watch him when he's in between jobs."

Lory could imagine what the man had to witness. He had seen an extreme case of it back when Ren was still a teen. The fact that he was reverting to that sort of behavior meant there was definitely more to this than it seemed. Thankfully, he only knew a little more than Yukihito about the current situation and he preferred to keep it that way. What he knew about Ren's past was already a dangerous enough burden without compounding it further. He would keep his silence until he was needed. For the time being, he waved a dismissive hand at the young Inquisitor's assistant.

"You already know how stubborn he is. Just let him figure things out for himself first. As long as he knows we're here for him whenever he wants to talk, that's probably the best we can do for now."

A knock at the door interrupted their conversation and the Chief Inquisitor called for the person to enter. A young woman walked in that neither of them recognized. She did not take the seat that was offered to her and, instead, chose to stand.

"My business will be brief, sir," she said it in an authoritative tone despite her verbal deference to his position. "I am here to inform you that you will be called upon to provide an Inquisitor for a special investigation in the near future. You will be apprised of the whatever relevant information you need at that time."

"Why was I not approached by a representative of the Assembly?" he asked with no small amount of skepticism.

The woman gave him a cold smile followed by an over-exaggerated bow. He felt a foreboding shiver trickle down his spine.

"Kimiko Morizumi at your service, sir. I _am_ a representative of the Assembly and I was asked to contact you on their behalf regarding this. Because this is a matter that has a very unique precedent, your regular representative was not commissioned for this task."

"And just what is this… unique precedent?" he asked carefully.

"It relates to Article 37 of the Founding Covenant."

Lory's eyes widened in shock momentarily before he wrestled it back into its previous expression of placid indifference.

"But that's—"

"As I said, Chief Inquisitor, you will be contacted with further details," she interrupted. "That will be all."

The woman quickly spun on her heels and strode briskly back towards the office door. Both men gaped in her wake and continued to do so until the door closed behind her with a loud click. Yukihito looked at Lory in shock and noticed the color had drained from the older man's face. His mouth opened and closed silently like he was unable to find the words he wanted to say.

"Sir, are you alright?"

Chief Takarada shook his head once before responding.

"I'll be fine, but I'm more worried about what all this means."

"When she said Article 37," Yukihito pondered aloud, searching the virtual filing cabinets in his mind for a match. "That's the section that allows for the use of extractions on innocent witnesses, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is," he confirmed.

"Then the precedent she was referring to would be—"

Lory cut him off with a curt nod.

"The investigation of the Keypointe Incident."

* * *

 **LEAVING AT THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME, SORRY: So, here is where I break the bad news that I have to go on a break for a little while. The annual con that I go to is coming up and I'll be traveling again as soon as I get back from it for several weeks. As such, I won't have time to update as regularly as I have been. Therefore, any further updates will be, at best, intermittent and, at worst, non-existent for at least a month and a half (possibly 2 months). Once things are back on an even keel, I'll let you all know when I plan to resume regular updates.**

 **I will try to keep you somewhat placated by posting one-shots in my collection (i.e. Paperwork for a Week) when I can, so keep an eye over there if you need a quick fix!**

 **Now, behave yourselves until I return and play nicely with the other children.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	21. Notice

**CHAPTER 20: Notice**

"Chiori, I thought you'd matured from the childish pranks by now."

A young woman called out over her shoulder as she smoothly kicked the greasy dish rag out of her path and continued walking towards the dining area carrying a tray laden with plates. When she returned to the kitchen, she found the subject of her earlier comment refilling a water pitcher at the sink, her brows wrinkled with an indignant frown.

"It wasn't me, Natsu, I swear!"

Natsu gave her a dismissive shrug and rolled her eyes, "It's hard to tell sometimes, you know. Your first attempts were sorely lacking in originality. What was that first one? Freezing a puddle of water in front of the walk-in so that I'd slip and fall through the door and you'd lock me inside?"

"Yeah, yeah, don't remind me," Chiori grumbled.

"Anyway, your elderly gentleman caller just came in," the other young woman gave her a teasing smile.

"Please, please don't ever call him that to his face," Chiori pleaded. "That man is a respected member of our community."

"If you say so. I assume he'll be in your section again today?"

"Only because he says you give him the creeps."

Natsu loudly dropped the empty tray she had been holding onto the stack of the others, earning her a sharp reprimand from the kitchen staff. Ignoring them, she crossed her arms and gave Chiori an unamused frown.

"Chiori, it's not very nice to lie," she chided.

"Well, he didn't say those specific words," the other woman defended herself. "It was more along the lines of him feeling more comfortable being served by me."

A flat hum came from Natsu's lips as she turned to look intently out the kitchen door at the table where the man in question sat. She started to walk out the door in his direction when a hand around her wrist pulled her back.

"What are you doing?"

"I was going to find out why I make your friend so uncomfortable," came her seemingly innocent reply.

"You can't just interrogate our customers, Natsu."

"I would've been nice about it."

She pushed her bottom lip out in an exaggerated pout and her coworker rolled her eyes in exasperation. Pulling the pitcher out of the sink, Chiori ran a hand along the side of it, the water immediately began to cool and a frosty sheen formed on the glass.

"Your version of 'nice' is highly questionable."

"Let me at least get his drink order for you," Natsu offered, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. "You have your hands full with your other tables right now anyway."

Chiori looked skeptical towards her coworker's sudden bout of altruism. Still, she knew there was little she could do to dissuade her.

"Fine, have it your way. Just don't insult him," Chiori wagged a finger in warning. "He tips me well and I'd like to make sure he keeps coming back."

"I promise I'll be on my best behavior."

Chiori went through the double doors with her newly filled pitcher to attend to her current tables. Natsu was close behind her and sauntered over to the older man sitting alone at his usual table, a booth by the window. The narrow-brimmed felt hat he wore upon entering the establishment now rested on the seat beside him, exposing his nearly hairless head. Pasting on a saccharine smile, she leaned forward over the table to greet him.

"Hi, my name is Natsu. Could I get you started with something to drink this evening?"

"No, I'm happy to wait for my regular server, thanks."

"Are you sure?" Her head tilted to one side as she asked the question. "Chiori is a bit busy with her other tables at the moment, I just wanted to make sure you weren't kept waiting for too long."

"I'd rather that than having to endure the someone like you."

"E-excuse me?!" the only evidence of her shock was the death grip her hand suddenly had on the notepad it held.

"You might have everyone else here fooled with that mask, but I can see you for what you are."

It had been some time since she had to endure the ridicule of others for being Unaugmented, but never forgot how to handle it. She immediately went on the defensive.

"My coworkers and my employers all know I don't have an ability, if that's what you mean."

"You know very well that's not what I meant," the man scoffed in irritation. "You're a fake and I cannot abide fake people. Now, why don't you run off somewhere else and leave me in peace until Chiori can tend to me?"

She pushed aside the sudden feeling of panic at his words and refused to let him think he was, in any way, correct about his brazen assumptions. Squaring her shoulders, she looked the man dead in the eye and drew herself up to her full height. A blazing, but empty, smile curved her lips and she looked at him with the most professional expression she could manage that had only a smattering of irritation.

"Whatever things you _think_ you might know about me, and whatever theories you may or may not have about my personal life, are none of your concern. Furthermore, this is certainly not the appropriate place for discussing them," her eyes narrowed and the smile dropped. "I shall leave you to wait on Chiori, sir. Good day."

She spun on her heels and briskly marched back to the kitchen, stopping only to reapply her sweet smile to check on her current table. Not once did she look back at the strange, confrontational old man.

When closing time was upon them, Chiori approached Natsu holding up a folded piece of paper.

"My regular asked me to give this to you."

"What is it?" she slowly plucked the paper from Chiori's fingers.

"No idea. He said it was only for you to see, but he sounded… almost impressed with you."

Natsu cautiously opened it, her perfectly manicured nails parting the paper along the folds. Inside was a terse, handwritten note that only had an address, date and time. Her face betraying nothing of what she had read, she refolded the paper and slipped it into a small pocket in her purse.

"You said earlier that he was respected in the community," Natsu thought out loud. "Who exactly is he?"

"Kotetsu Uesugi offers private tutoring to younger Augmenteds get a better grasp of their abilities."

Her brow wrinkled in confusion, "I thought that was the Academy's role."

"It is, but they have a tendency to focus mainly on those Augmenteds who show exceptional prowess with their abilities. Uesugi helps those underserved kids who have weaker abilities understand their full potential. Seeing that he used to work for the Academy before he retired, he's very good at what he does, so that makes him a bit of a local hero."

"That's… incredible."

"It is," Chiori nodded. "And, for some reason, he's taken a shine to you. No idea why since you're a Du—I mean, Unaugmented."

"Yeah, it certainly is weird," she cautiously agreed.

When she arrived at her tiny apartment later that night, she relished kicking off her uncomfortable shoes and fluffing her sleeked hair out into her preferred feathery spikes. After a whole day of being the cold, calculating and aloof Natsu, it was nice to just be Kyoko again. This was the last remaining place where she was able to be herself and she cherished every minute when she could do so.

After changing out of her work clothes and into her pajamas, she sank onto the small mattress on the floor with a loud sigh. She reached over to where she had dropped her purse and opened it, pulling out the note she had placed in there earlier. Unfolding it once more, she looked at the angular penmanship of the note within. The man was smart enough to mark the date as the one day of the week that the restaurant was closed, so he was at least courteous in that respect. However, the early meeting time was less than desirable to her.

Kyoko wondered what he had possibly figured out about her. The fear that gradually filled the pit of her stomach over the course of the evening told her to run. If she had been discovered, she had every reason to leave town as soon as possible. However, the vocal minority in the back of her mind gave her pause, saying that she had no reason to leave just yet. Even if he somehow worked out that she was Augmented, there was no way he knew what kind of ability she had.

Additionally, he was unaware of her real identity. If he sought to blackmail her, she could easily disappear without repercussion. Natsu Kitazawa did not exist and illicitly using telepathic abilities to glean her true name from her would be unsuccessful. In her home country, children were taught from a young age to close their minds to probing to keep them safe from strangers.

After a few more moments of deliberation, she concluded that her position had not been truly compromised. At least not yet. However, she was still undecided as to whether or not she wished to know exactly what this Kotetsu Uesugi wanted from her. As he was a frequent patron of the restaurant, she would have a difficult time trying to avoid him without changing her schedule. Quitting was out of the question; she had a hard enough time finding places that would hire her without asking too many questions.

He appeared to be someone held in high esteem, according to Chiori. Had this happened a few weeks prior, she would not have believed the woman so readily. Their fractious relationship improved considerably once Natsu proved she was not one to succumb to bullying tactics. Now that things had changed in that respect, Chiori could prove to be a boon of information.

She figured her next step would be to learn she could about him and go from there. There was that old saying about knowing one's enemy, after all.

* * *

Chief Inquisitor Lory Takarada idly tapped a finger against his desk as the person sitting across from him droned on. He had awaited this day with no small amount of anxiety. Now it was here and the Assembly sent their envoy to carry out the order. As such, he was currently tuning out the young woman who was reading the formalized request to him from the sheet of paper she held. It was always red tape and formalities and official documents signed in triplicate with the Assembly and it tired him to no end.

From what he could gather by half-listening, the Assembly decided to reopen investigations into the Keypointe Incident, now that new information had become available. But, only a small group of people were to be involved with a very limited scope. For what reason, he was not told. However, the sinking feeling in his gut told him nothing good would come of it. Hopefully, they would only ask him to assign a random Inquisitor and that would be the end of it.

The fact that Ren was one of his best and crucial to expediting a large number of cases made it easier to remove him from the selection pool. He would just have to make sure he chose someone else of nearly equal caliber so that he did not come off as dismissive towards the request.

"… therefore, it is officially decided that Inquisitor Tsuruga be appointed to assist in this endeavor."

The finger abruptly stopped tapping as his eyes refocused on one Kimiko Morizumi. She tossed her long, dark hair over her shoulder and the hint of a smile flitted across her face when she realized she now had his undivided attention.

"The Assembly has never requested an Inquisitor by name before," he kept all traces of surprise out of his voice. "Why now?"

"We are in need of someone who is the most talented for this particular investigation."

"Do you know for how long this will be?" he made a show of exhaling a put-upon sigh. "Ren is my best and brightest and one of the main reasons we can close out cases so quickly. While I can make do without him for a short period, our efficiency will be severely hindered if he's gone for very long."

"The Assembly will be understanding if you happen to fall behind on any cases in his absence. But, since this has been given a higher priority, their request takes precedence."

The authoritative condescension with which she spoke was grating on his nerves.

"I see."

"As for the duration, that will depend on how quickly Inquisitor Tsuruga can complete his tasks. If he is your top man, as you say, then I've no doubt he will be able to expedite the process," he could not miss the slight mocking tone of her voice. "Similarly, I have been ordered to assist him so, rest assured that our efforts will be doubled."

Her comment was less than reassuring. The fact that Ren was going to be accompanied by another representative of the Assembly meant that his usual assistant would be replaced. If they were leaving Yukihito out of it, that meant someone wanted to be able to control him in an environment of their own making. This was quickly moving from bad to worse and Lory was feeling utterly powerless and underprepared.

He hated that feeling.

"I appreciate the vote of self-confidence, Miss Morizumi," he laced his words with a strong hint of boredom. "Now, I would I assume I now have some scheduling matters to attend to. How soon will I need to notify my Inquisitor that he will be needed elsewhere?"

"He will be required to convene with me in your office at the start of next week."

"I'll be sure to inform him. Will there be anything else?"

"Not at the moment," her smile was making him ill with unease. "I will see you next week, Chief Inquisitor. I look forward to working with your most talented employee."

As he watched her leave a number of suspicions tumbled about his mind. Her expression when she noticed the change in his demeanor upon hearing that Ren was to be the assigned Inquisitor told him someone was anticipating that he would normally have been removed from the list of available choices. At the very least, she seemed to have enough knowledge of the underlying reason driving this investigation to react the way she had.

He did not trust her. Just as he did not trust anything about this situation when he was first notified of it.

He told Ren as such when he called him in to his office later that day; not bothering to hold back his frustration. The young Inquisitor sighed in resignation as he was told of his unfortunate assignment. While he was equally as unhappy about the arrangement as his superior, he almost sounded as if he had been expecting it. Lory looked at him carefully and processed his reaction.

"This has something to do with the girl, doesn't it?" he asked finally. "The timing is a bit…"

"Coincidental?" Ren offered with a shake of his head. "I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case."

"And you're not going to tell me what happened."

"You said yourself that it's better if you don't know."

The Chief Inquisitor let out a bitter chuckle, leaning back into his chair. He should have expected that response.

"Just waiting for a chance to throw that back in my face, weren't you?"

"No, your justification was always correct," the younger man reasoned, unperturbed. "The less any of us knows, the easier it is for us to deny when we are questioned."

"I know this is a burden you have to carry on your own," the Chief Inquisitor relented. "You just seem so overwhelmed by it, I wish I could help."

Ren shook his head.

"We knew this was going to be a dangerous situation the minute you suggested I come here."

"I only did it because I thought you'd be better protected this way," Lory explained with a frown. "But, now you'll be under the thumb of the Assembly and I cannot protect you there."

Ren looked far older than his years in that moment. While he typically had a more mature air about him due to his appearance and behavior, he looked almost exhausted by the invisible weight he carried on his shoulders. His face was drawn and his features were tight and more angular as if he had forgone eating for a considerable amount of time. Knowing him, Lory considered, that was probably not very far from the truth.

"This is most likely for the best, is it not?" Ren asked, the hopefulness in his tone rang hollow. "At least this way, I'll be the one conducting the investigation rather than being the subject of it. I would prefer being the extractor over being the extractee."

"Is anyone even capable of doing an extraction on you?"

Lory instantly regretted asking the question aloud. It gave a voice to a previously unspoken fear of his that he repeatedly tried to ignore over the years.

Ren just shrugged, "No one's ever had the reason to try."

"Well, here's hoping we never have to find out."

* * *

The meeting with Lory left his emotions in a state of tumult. Ren somberly walked back to his apartment that evening, waiting until he was safely in its confines before he could attempt processing everything. His boss was all too correct about the burden he carried. Its weight bore down increasingly with each passing day.

Today, it threatened to crush him flat.

He knew he was safer keeping the secret to himself, but that only served to make the task more difficult. Now that someone was trying again to uncover it, his efforts were doubly important. Ren unconsciously made a guttural sound as he plodded into his kitchen to pour a glass of whatever liquor he still had. The sharp bite of the amber liquid never registered on his face as he numbly knocked it back in one swig. He resolved to eat something later, _maybe_ , if his stomach could untangle itself enough to properly accept any.

Settling into the worn cushions of his couch, he retreated into his own mind. He needed something to lighten his mood, if only marginally. It was his hope that a pleasant memory or two would help quell the nausea that roiled his stomach and the overall sense of foreboding that plagued his waking—and sleeping, if he was honest—hours.

His route towards his memory archives was waylaid by a peculiar sight he caught out of the corner of his eye. He stopped in his tracks and slowly turned his head in the direction of what he initially swore could not be possible. Standing there was a very familiar young woman with long, black hair and golden eyes, dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt and staring around her in awe.

"Why are you here, Kyoko?"

He realized the instant the words left his mouth that 'how' would have been a better question.

"You tell me," she continued to look around her. "I'm not the one who keeps creating imaginary friends in their mind."

"Kuon was not imaginary," Ren defended in a sharp tone.

She let out a short, incredulous laugh, putting one hand on her hip and raising an eyebrow at him.

"Right, he was just a walking, talking personification of your past that you hid from yourself because of a traumatic experience," she said, not bothering to hold back on the sarcasm. "That lived only in your mind."

Ren looked away from her, letting out an elongated groan of frustration. She walked over to him and awkwardly began to pat him on the arm.

"There, there, it's alright. The first step to healing is admitting you have a problem."

"Why are you here?" he asked again through clenched teeth.

"Because, now that Kuon is a part of you again, you seem to be in need of another voice of reason? I don't know," she shrugged. "You're the one who created me. Shouldn't you be able to answer that?"

"If I could, I wouldn't be asking."

"Well, my real-life counterpart has disappeared to places unknown," a sly smile formed on her lips. "Could it be that you miss me?"

"You've been gone for weeks," he sounded unconvinced. "Probably over a month. Why would this only happen now?"

"Because you've been ignoring the fact that I'm gone this entire time. Now that something has come up to remind you, poof, here I am," she let go of his arm to gesture to herself.

"How do you know—"

"Because you created me, remember? I'm not actually Kyoko. I only know what you know. You know what? Hang on."

She disappeared with a pop and, before he had time to breathe a sigh of relief, she reappeared. Only this time she was the Kyoko he knew as a child. Tiny arms crossed over her chest, she glared up at him.

"There, is that better?"

Seeing her adult mannerisms manifested in her younger self was extremely bizarre. Ren almost looked away from her just to avoid the strange sight.

"Hardly."

"Thought so," she disappeared once more, returning in her previous form. "I guess you're just stuck with me."

"If I created you, then I can just get rid of you," he threatened.

"I imagine you could, Mr. Super Strong Telepath," she taunted him with a roll of her eyes. "So, get on with it then."

"I did not come here to be accosted by my own subconscious."

"Hey, you started asking the questions, buddy," she pointed a finger at him. "You could've just ignored me and continued about your business."

Ren pinched at the bridge of his nose and took several deep breaths.

"Then, perhaps that is what I will do."

He promptly stalked away from her and hastened to his archives. Eventually, he settled into one of the comfortable chairs with an older memory. A happy one from when he camping together with his parents as a child. The sight of his much younger self laughing gleefully along with his mother and father soothed him somewhat and he smiled fondly at the memory.

His respite was abruptly disturbed when a pair of hands thrust an opened book from somewhere else in his archives over his shoulder.

"Hey, remember that time you tripped and fell face first into the stream?" one of the hands pointed to a picture in the book depicting said event. "That was hilarious."

"I thought I could just ignore you."

"Well you can," the figment of his imagination confirmed. "That doesn't mean I ignore you in return."

"What do you want from me?" he sighed in resignation.

"I dunno. I kinda liked the guessing game we were playing earlier about why I might be here."

"Well I didn't," he got up from his seat and walked away to put his book back where it belonged.

"Maybe I'm like a ghost or something," she suggested, running behind him to catch up. "Maybe you have some regrets or unfinished business with me?"

"I have a number of regrets, several of which originate with Kyoko," he turned to look at her before hanging his head in defeat. "But, I know your counterpart wouldn't think twice about hunting me down just to punch me in the shoulder for indulging them if she knew. I've done my best to make my peace with them."

"What about unfinished business, then? Is there something you need to say to me that you aren't able to?"

He stared blankly at her, unable to process why she was goading him like this. Did he really create this irritatingly persistent avatar of her just so he could alleviate some hidden want? He was instantly reminded of Kuon and concluded that it would not be the most farfetched thing he had done in his own mind.

Ren pushed a forceful breath out through his pursed lips, "Fine, say I did have 'unfinished business,' as you suggest. How would addressing it with a subconscious delusion solve anything?"

"Well, you never know until you try."

He sighed again, pushing a hand through his hair. This whole fiasco was happening in his own mind. There really was nothing he had to lose in that instance and no one else in front of whom he could embarrass himself. So, he closed his eyes and went with it.

"I wish we had more time after we got our memories back. I miss you more than words can describe and not a day goes by that I don't worry about whether or not you're safe; whether or not you're happy. And I'm scared," he pulled in an unsteady breath. "I'm scared that this new investigation will uncover the truth about us and you're too far away for me to warn you or protect you…"

"And?" the not-Kyoko prompted.

"And I wish I had someone to talk to about this because I don't know if I'll be strong enough to do this on my own," he opened his eyes and frowned to himself. "But I know that I have to try. I'm going to try. If I don't, everything we've done so far will have been for nothing."

His face was set in grim determination, but she smiled so brightly at him. Then, she reached over to grasp his hand in hers.

"There. That wasn't so hard, was it?"

And she vanished.

* * *

 **IT'S BEEN A WHILE, HASN'T IT? Well, I don't know about you, but I'm happy to be back even though I struggled for a while on this chapter. Hopefully this was a decent enough showing for my awaited return.**

 **The plan so far is to keep updating every other Tuesday until life gets in the way again. If that changes, you'll be the first to know! Until then, I'll be eagerly awaiting you all to show me some love in the reviews.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	22. Resolve

**CHAPTER 21: Resolve**

Ren's stomach did its best impression of a bubbling cauldron as he waited in his superior's office that morning for the Assembly's representative to arrive. He had forced a paltry breakfast down his throat on his way to the Academy in the hope that he would, at least, be somewhat nourished for the day ahead. Eating was still a chore but, he figured he would be doing himself a great disservice if he tried to endure this day without some sort of sustenance.

He let his discomfort show plainly on his face in the presence of the Chief Inquisitor. This was the only person in front of whom he could do such a thing and he allowed himself to take advantage of the opportunity. He was going to be conducting extractions on innocents and, while he tried his best to ignore that thought in favor of remembering his duty as an Inquisitor and the threats of his past coming to light, it still haunted the back of his mind and made him queasy. The older man gave him sympathetic looks from across his desk as the two of them sat in tense stillness and waited. Yukihito had only just left them; he was reassigned to help as a supplementary assistant to the rest of the Inquisitors as necessary until Ren returned.

It was almost quarter past the hour when the door to Lory's office opened again. The late arrival was true to form for Assembly delegates, as they were habitually tardy. Since most things could not start without their presence, it was a privilege they indulged in abusing. This one, apparently, was no different.

Ren refused to turn around and acknowledge the new arrival. Instead, he used the time of her approach to the desk to reapply his mask of professional poise. Each feature on his face worked itself into flat, emotionlessness with every clicking step of her shoe on the hardwood floor. Once she was standing beside the chair next to him, both he and his boss rose from their seats to greet her.

While Kimiko Morizumi would be considered attractive by most standards, her smile felt almost predatory to him. The enthusiastic way she shook his hand after they were formally introduced—she clasped both of her hands around the singular one he grimly offered—caused the hair to rise on the back of his neck in warning. She batted her eyes at him and he wondered absently if her perfume would always be so suffocatingly sweet. Still, he remained unruffled and offered the requisite nod and the polite single syllable answer.

Once they were all seated, Lory did his best to take control of the meeting and keep everyone on track so that work could begin as soon as possible. Ren passed him the quickest, surreptitious look of gratitude for that.

"How, exactly, is this arrangement supposed to work?" he asked Kimiko. "As far as I'm aware, you are not an Inquisitor."

She let out a high-pitched giggle that sounded more pretentious and artificial than anything else. The Chief Inquisitor rolled his eyes and Ren used the hand on the side facing away from her to massage at his temple.

"Ah, that I am not, unfortunately. I am but a humble lower-level telepath," the only thing humble about her was the word itself as her tone was anything but. "That's where Inquisitor Tsuruga comes in. He will be my key."

Ren inwardly commended himself for not visibly flinching at her comment. The desire to do so was overwhelming as it stirred up emotions he fought to suppress since the day Kyoko left. Being used as a key for anyone else seemed profane, like it defiled the memory of the girl who left him behind. An angry growl rose up within him, but stopped just behind his lips.

"So, you're piggybacking on his extraction," Lory pressed forward with no patience for polite, roundabout talk.

"If you wish to put it that way, yes," she voiced her distaste for his choice of words. "However, when I said he was my key, I did not misspeak. He will not be the one searching for information."

"Let me see if I understand this correctly," Lory mused aloud. "The Assembly has requested the assignment of my top Inquisitor so that he can be used as a glorified doorman?"

"Directly assisting the Assembly, in any capacity, is a great honor that should not be discounted, Chief Inquisitor," Kimiko admonished him with an air of inflated superiority. "He has been asked to perform a task that was expressly entrusted to him."

Lory let silence fill the room until it was almost stifling before changing directions.

"I suppose we are not going to know the names of those who are to be extracted in advance?"

"Your intellect and comprehension know no bounds, Takarada," her tone was so patronizing, it was almost disrespectful. "You are correct."

"He will have no information regarding my assignment and where I'll be working?" Ren finally spoke up.

"The only reason he was informed of this in the first place was out of respect for his position and to provide advance warning so that he could adjust schedules as needed to keep this department running. Otherwise, this could've been kept exclusively between us."

He did not miss the way her voice dipped low and became almost gravelly on the last three words, nor did he miss the quick dart of her tongue across her lips as her eyes drifted from his torso to his face. It nearly caused the breakfast he fought so hard to eat that morning to come back up. Having based his judgement on her behavior in just the past few minutes, he could not fathom how he was going to survive the duration of his assignment with her.

But he was going to try.

The meeting ended shortly thereafter with little else left to discuss. When he left with Kimiko, Ren nearly tripped over his own feet trying to take small enough steps to remain behind her as she walked. Unfortunately, she kept slowing down to walk alongside him and he resigned himself to the forced arrangement, but made sure to keep an arms-length of distance between them as much as possible.

She did not lead him to the usual judicial building he tended to frequent downtown when performing extractions. Instead, they were transported to a building on the far edges of Academy grounds he had never before entered. It was similar in layout to where he would typically go for Assembly meetings, only this place had much smaller rooms, and a larger quantity of them. The intricate gold foil seal on the glass door when they entered told him it was probably for Assembly use only.

"I take it you already have individuals scheduled for extractions?" he asked after they were both settled in an office towards the back of the second floor.

"We wouldn't be here if I didn't. Well, I suppose if I were allowed, I would have requested that we delay the schedule a bit so you and I could have a chance to get to know each other, but all of the directives have already been sent out."

Her words took on a coquettish lilt and there it was again. His breakfast was threatening to revolt and escape from his stomach.

"Will you be telling me who our first appointment is or do I have the honor of being surprised each time?" the sarcasm slipped out of his mouth before he could rein it in, but his companion did not seem at all perturbed by it.

She pulled a sheet of paper off the nearby desk and began to read from it

"The first is a male who works for the Academy. He's a sympath in his late twenties who teaches Introduction to Abilities to incoming students."

Ren suspected that he knew who she was talking about, but decided to confirm all the same.

"And does this sterile description come with a name?"

She laughed as if he had told the funniest joke she had heard all day. The sound of it made him cringe and he looked away from her so that she would not see it on his face. Once her chuckles stopped, she smiled at him again in that skin-crawling way.

"Hiroaki Ogata."

* * *

Kanae looked down again at the piece of paper she held in her hands. She had done that repeatedly for the past fen minutes as if to confirm that she was not imagining things. With an exasperated sigh, she folded it back up and stuffed it into her locker. Her break was nearly over and she was not about to have her pay docked because she was busy gawking at a piece of mail.

She wished she had a little more time to ponder on it, however. It's not everyday someone gets a letter like that. One of the orderlies had dropped it into her hand not more than an hour prior and, now, it was throwing off the rest of her day. Evening classes were going to be nearly unbearable at this point. Actually, everything was going to be unbearable until she could get back to her dormitory and process things. It was a small mercy that she would be busy for the remainder of the day. The distraction would, hopefully, be enough to keep her focused on the tasks at hand.

Still, she could not help but think of one spirited young woman in particular and Kanae wondered if she would mind sharing the use of her favorite tree.

* * *

"Chiori, he comes in here almost daily and always sits in your section," she said one evening when they had a few spare minutes alone in the kitchen. "How have you not gotten to know him yet?"

Chiori was limited in the information she provided regarding Kotetsu Uesugi. Either that, or she was deliberately withholding for unspoken reasons. Kyoko was leaning towards the latter reason, but refrained from prying any further. She recognized the value in keeping secrets and was not terribly eager to uncover those of someone else, lest the same be done to her.

"Because, unlike _some people_ I could mention," she looked over at Kyoko with one eyebrow arched defiantly. "I don't make it my personal mission to know everything about them. Maybe you should ask some of the others around here, if you're so curious. I'm sure they'd be able to tell you more than I could."

So, she did.

The responses were often accompanied by long, rambling stories that she fought to keep a smile throughout. One elderly lady knew him from when they went to school together and loudly lamented the fact that she never confessed to him, despite currently being happily married. A little girl at another table told her about her big brother who went for tutoring and said that she had never seen him so happy afterwards and could not wait until it was her turn when she Awakened. One of the chefs in the kitchen told her his florapathic best friend could barely get a single dandelion to bloom when she was younger. She now cares for the more sensitive and difficult plants in the largely popular botanical garden in the city.

"I trust him more with my kids than I do some of my own family members," was the glowing review she got from one of their suppliers' delivery drivers.

Interestingly enough, none of the people she talked to had any ties to him while he was at the Academy. Similarly, no one had anything to say about what he did there. Most would claim that he opted to not talk much about his personal life in favor of focusing on helping others. Still, Kyoko could barely believe that everyone she talked to had nothing but positive things to say about this man. Was he really that amazing or was everyone in the town somehow brainwashed?

She supposed there was only one way to find out.

* * *

The building she found that morning at the address on the note was a nondescript, red brick structure that could have been an accounting or engineering firm's offices in another life. The front door was already unlocked and, when she stepped inside, she could hear the murmur of voices coming from further down the main hallway. The voices got louder and started moving towards her.

Kyoko was soon greeted by the sight of nearly a dozen children, probably no older than ten, barreling down the hallway towards the front door. They chattered animatedly between themselves, each talking louder than the other in an attempt to be heard. Stepping to one side, she was prepared to dodge further out of the way when a stern voice called from behind them.

"Time and place!"

The talking stopped immediately, and all of the children faced the hallway and stood at attention. Kotetsu emerged, his expression calm, but unyielding.

"What do I always say?" he sharply prompted them.

"Understanding how we control ourselves is key to understanding how we control our abilities," their voices were not quite in unison and some trailed behind, finishing the statement several beats behind the others.

"And, is this a good example of controlling yourselves?"

"No, sir." came their ashamed, scattered reply.

"Then apologize to the young lady on your way out," he ordered, waving a hand in Kyoko's direction.

Mumbled apologies, some accompanied by shallow bows or nods of the head, were offered to her as each child walked out the door in single file. Kyoko turned to the man once they had all departed.

"They did not really need to apologize to me—"

"It is my decision as to how to govern my students when they are within these walls, not yours," he snapped, cutting her off.

She was taken aback by his indignant reply, instantly doubting that this was really the person the entire town lauded as a hero. On the other hand, she realized that passing judgement on the methods of someone she did not know was, probably, a bit rude. Instead, she opted for a more neutral topic.

"I did not realize you held classes so early."

"Some of my students' parents work odd hours."

He turned around and walked back the way he came without saying anything further or inviting her to follow. Kyoko hesitated for a several moments, wondering if she should go with him. Eventually, she hastened after him. She had woken up far too early and walked all the way across town for this, after all.

A small, sparsely furnished office at the end of the hallway was where she found him once she finally caught up. He was sitting patiently at his desk as if he had been waiting for her the entire time. Despite guessing he would not offer her a seat, she still chose to stand. It made escaping a lot easier, should it be deemed necessary. Politely clasping her hands in front of her, she waited for him to speak first.

"Nice to know I was right about you. You're not a coward."

"And what, exactly, did you base this assumption on?" she asked, making no attempt to hide her annoyance with his attitude.

"You had the eyes of a runner," he paused to gauge her reaction to the statement and, seemingly satisfied when he did not receive one, he continued. "While my first instinct was that your circumstances were more of a tactical retreat, I had doubts that it was possible you were just running scared."

Kyoko chose to not respond to this and remained quiet so as to not betray her unease with the whole exchange.

"You're not the first person to come to this place after fleeing from their Academy," he pushed her again.

"You guessed that from my eyes as well, I take it?" she countered, challenging him to reveal the evidence behind his accusations.

"No. You showed up only recently and started working in a town where most people have known each other for the majority of their lives. That alone makes you stand out," he explained in a matter-of-fact manner. "Your choice to lie about being Unaugmented only helped confirm things."

"I never lied to you about that."

"Not to me, specifically. I noticed you were very careful about your words," he pointed at her in acknowledgement. "But I've heard enough talk about you from your co-workers."

"Then, how are you so sure it was a lie?" she was not yet ready to concede and tried to provoke him further.

"Ah, before I can answer that, you need to make a choice."

"What choice?" she asked slowly.

"I'm fairly certain you have no formal training as to how to use your ability, whatever it is," he waved a hand and she could not help the silent sigh of relief that he, at least, had no idea what her ability actually was. "Therefore, I am offering you a choice to learn or to remain as you are now. If you choose the former, you will need to come to terms with yourself, your weaknesses, and your self-imposed limitations."

"And if I choose not to?" she resisted, stubbornness was her only weapon at this point.

"Then this conversation ends here and I will say nothing further to you. Nor will I say anything about you to anyone. You have my word on that," he vowed, and she was oddly inclined to believe him. "Now, you may take the remainder of the day to think about it and come back tomorrow morning with your answer."

"No."

"No?" her quick response threw him off and his brow furrowed in confusion.

"I will give you my answer now," Kyoko kept her voice steady and determined.

"There is no need to rush into this," he tried to dissuade her. "Wouldn't you prefer to be certain before proceeding?"

"I had to leave everything behind; my friends, my family, my—" she floundered trying to find a word to describe what Kuon was to her and failed. "This is all I have left. _I'm_ all I have left. I can't run from myself after I've run from everything else."

The man at the desk regarded her silently for several seconds. Then, something barely recognizable as a smile crossed his face for only a fleeting moment before it was gone.

"I really _was_ right about you."

Kyoko basked in the praise briefly before she remembered what had started the whole situation. Pulling the nearest chair backwards a few inches, she lowered herself into it.

"So, how _did_ you figure out I was Augmented?"

Kotetsu leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers together. His eyes turned upward momentarily, as if he was searching for the right words to begin with. Looking back at Kyoko, he moved forward and placed his arms flat on his desk.

"Tell me, Natsu—and I know that's probably not you're real name, but we'll stick with it for now," he qualified before proceeding. "What do you know about the sensors?"

"Are you referring to the ones the Academies use?" when he nodded to indicate she was correct, she continued. "They're some sort of machine or equipment that the Academy has setup around the country to mainly monitor and pinpoint Awakenings but also to track the energy emitted by Augmenteds when they use their abilities."

"That sounds like the typical textbook answer," he agreed flatly. "But, did they ever teach you about their history?"

Kyoko shook her head.

"What if I told you that I used to be one of them?"

* * *

 **I HOPE YOU BROUGHT YOUR PITCHFORKS! A number of you remarked on how you were already starting to hate on Kimiko. Well, I hope your lust for loathing has been increased exponentially with this chapter. Honestly, I was even cursing her name as I was writing this.**

 **Hope you've all enjoyed the triple release in commemoration of my favorite holiday ever; Halloween!**

 **AUTHOR (hanging) OUT (with the bats)!**


	23. History

**CHAPTER 22: HISTORY**

"I'm afraid I don't understand," Kyoko frowned at the man sitting across from her. "Are you trying to tell me that the sensors are actual people?"

"They are or, more accurately, they _were_ ," Kotetsu nodded. "You may have been taught that detection of Augmented persons has improved in recent decades due to 'technological advancements,' but I'm willing to wager they never explained how those advancements came about."

"No surprise there," she snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Indeed," he agreed flatly. "I suppose most Academies would be loathe to disclose that they built their success on the backs of individuals they initially considered to be Unaugmented until empirical evidence convinced them otherwise."

"They thought you didn't have an ability?"

He shook his head.

"It was impossible to prove at first, since the ability to sense abilities in others was a bit of a chicken and egg problem. The only way we could determine whether or not we had an ability was through corroboration with another person of the same ability. That alone was difficult enough as there were not very many of us."

The very thought of how one could possibly go about trying to convince someone of that made her head hurt, but she prompted him to continue.

"How did they figure it out?"

"Well, the Academies started to compare notes and realized that many of them were hearing the same stories, just from different countries."

According to a combination of what he had been told and what he had overheard back then, a number of citizens from various countries were attempting to declare that they had an ability that allowed them to identify the existence of abilities in others. At that time, it was already recorded that some stronger Augmenteds were sensitive to the Awakenings of others who had similarly high-level abilities. There were mentions of those individuals experiencing headaches and dizziness around the time of another's Awakening. However, it was little more than speculative observation.

Nonetheless, the absence of evidence left the claims unfounded. That is, until several different Academies got together and hired a group of researchers to investigate them. Kotetsu explained that it took a few years to organize, but many people signed up to be studied, if only to prove that they were not just spouting nonsense.

"And you were one of them?" she asked, though she already assumed what the answer would be.

"Not at first, no, but I eventually gave in after several friends convinced me that I should. There were seven of us in our particular group," he pointed to a dark, wooden picture frame that sat on a bookshelf to the side.

Kyoko stood and moved closer to the shelf on which it sat to get a better look at the photo within. It was fading and worn around the edges, but she could clearly make out the faces of seven people who appeared to be in their late teens to early twenties. On either side, they were flanked by two people in white lab coats. Some of the group were smiling and others had neutral expressions. One of them was frowning.

"You must be the third one from the right," she remarked in amusement, noticing that the frown looked extremely familiar.

"As I said, I had to be convinced to participate in the first place," he repeated drily.

She turned back towards him with a small smile.

"Did the Academies have the same reputation then as they do now?"

He shook his head, "No, they didn't."

"Then, why were you so hesitant? I thought the Academies were fairly altruistic and helpful in the beginning."

The older man tilted his head back and forth in consideration, one hand stroked at his chin a few times before it fell back onto the desk.

"I suppose I was mostly upset that it took so long for them to finally accept that maybe we were telling the truth about our abilities and not just trying to make ourselves sound special," he replied with a light scoff.

"That's understandable," Kyoko nodded.

She had been in a similar position not that long ago. Granted, her situation was a bit more convoluted, but she could still sympathize with the desire to know for sure whether or not you have an ability. It must have been especially hard for him since no one wanted to—or could—do anything to help prove that.

"It's funny that you mention their reputation," he noted. "I suppose you have myself, and the others like me who were a part of the research program, to blame for that."

"Why? What did they do to you?" she asked, her eyes widening in expectant horror.

"Nothing extreme, in our case. The usual double-blind studies to verify that we actually could identify Augmenteds from Unaugmenteds," his shoulders raised once in a brief shrug. "Once that was established, they moved on to scans that monitored our neural and cardiovascular systems when we were in the presence of an Augmented person. However, some Academies went a little further and began controlling diets and monitoring the subjects… outputs."

Kyoko gasped, her face a grimace of disgust.

"Needless to say, between all of them, they'd compiled an immense collection of data that conclusively said that sensing an ability was also an ability in itself."

"And that was a good thing… right?" she sounded unsure of her words even as they issued from her lips.

"At the time, yes. All of the participants were automatically admitted as Academy students and we were given extremely well paying jobs upon completing their studies," he rubbed his thumb back and forth across his fingertips to emphasize just how lucrative his employment was. "They set us up in Academy-funded housing in various parts of our respective countries and we were tasked with discovering newly-awakened Augmenteds."

"That still doesn't explain why we're now taught that sensors are machines," Kyoko pointed out, still confused. "Why would they lie about something like that?"

"Because the sensors the Academies use now _are_ machines," he revealed finally. "I mentioned before that we were a rare breed and that didn't change. We were hoarded like limited resources; ridiculously overpaid and pampered so that we would stay employed with our Academy and not move on to another in hopes of a better opportunity."

He disclosed that it soon became something that was financially impossible for Academies to sustain. Therefore, it was time to find another solution and they had scads of data they could review. All they had to do was figure out exactly what to do with the knowledge they already had. So, eventually, they got engineers involved.

The wealthier Academies funneled money into designing equipment that could perform the same task as a Sensor. The researchers from the original studies were rehired as consultants and teamed up with a new batch of scientists. A little over five years went by before they figured out that the ability was based on a sensitivity to energy emitted by Augmenteds on a previously undiscovered frequency. After that, it was up to the engineers to fabricate something that could work on the same frequency.

It took roughly ten years for the first sensor machine to successfully pass rigorous rounds of testing. After that, they were being manufactured on a larger scale and implemented in the bigger, more populated cities. The Academies still kept their sensors as employees, of course, mostly to corroborate that the machines were doing their jobs correctly. But, once they could get consistent enough readings from them, they were all forced into retirement with large enough severance packages that would silence even the loudest complaint.

"So, they replaced you and they paid you off?"

"Essentially, yes," he answered with a nod and a sigh.

"How do more people not know about this?"

Kotetsu barked out a short laugh, "This _was_ almost fifty years ago and the study wasn't widely advertised at the time. We also didn't have the types of communication and connectivity then that you do now. At the most, people had rumors and fragments stories to go by. Of course, that didn't stop them from filling in the gaps with their imaginations."

"And that's how it started? That's how the Academy got such a vaguely questionable reputation?"

It seemed hard to believe at first, but the longer she thought about it, the more it made sense. Kyoko was no stranger to hearsay and the power of speculation. It seemed completely plausible that the public at large would come to such a conclusion. The worst part was that they were not entirely incorrect.

"That's my theory at least," the older man shook his head. "We set a scary precedent that has allowed Academies to conduct extensive research on various Augmenteds in the name of 'better understanding their abilities'."

"But, they haven't really created replacements for any of the other abilities," she was quick to point out.

"Because this one was wholly suitable for the Academies and their need to discover and classify each Augmented citizen," Kotetsu clarified. "They wanted more than nature could provide. So, what is a business to do when there's only one supplier of a service they so desperately need? They learn how to do it themselves."

"So, there's almost nothing that could stop them from exploring a variety of other avenues; weaponization of abilities, genetic manipulation to ensure high-level Augmented children," Kyoko marveled as she slowly realized the full implications of his story. "The possibilities are nearly endless."

The older man stood up and walked over to where she still stood near the bookshelf, nodding his head towards the photo.

"That's mostly why I set up this school," he reasoned. "I suppose it was a bit immature of me, but I wanted to confound them a little and give them something they couldn't scientifically explain. I witnessed and learned remarkable things about Augmenteds and their abilities during my years as a sensor. We humans are always full of surprises, so I hoped to foster that during a time when all the Academies want is predictability."

"Well, I'm convinced," Kyoko clapped her hands together decisively, grinning at the older man. "When do I start?"

He gave her a list of days and times when he was not otherwise occupied with lessons. She agreed that she would visit three times per week as her work schedule allowed. He agreed to make himself available at those times so that she could show up without any prior notice. If anyone asked why she was there, their story would be that she had been hired to help him with assorted clerical tasks.

With a sense of relief she had not felt in a considerable amount of time, Kyoko gratefully shook his hand.

"Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity," she gushed. "And for not asking too many questions."

"I'm sure you'll tell me what you need to, when you need to," he waved his hand in the air, dismissing her words. "Most of this will depend on how quickly you adjust to learning and doing new and different things with your mind and body that you never considered possible. It's easier with the kids, but typically proves to be more of a challenge for adults."

Her lip quirked up on one side at his words, "I don't know about that. I think you'll be surprised."

Little did he know, at least during her time at the Academy, she had done nothing _but_ that.

* * *

Professor Ogata arrived at the scheduled time on his own, without an escort. Ren was, understandably, surprised that he would do this of his own accord. Most of the people were extremely resistant to the idea and had to be physically restrained for extractions. That said, he did not miss the fleeting look of shock when the man recognized his face.

To her credit—and to his chagrin—he was forced to admit that Kimiko acted with complete professionalism for the duration of the appointment. Still, her duality made her previous behavior around him and his superior all the more distasteful.

"Be advised that this does not implicate you, nor is it a declaration of a suspicion of guilt. We are simply on a confidential fact-finding mission, thus the need for extractions as opposed to regular questioning. As such, we are appreciative of your cooperation in this matter," she continued to rattle off a recitation of legalese with expert efficiency.

Ogata's eyes kept flicking over to him periodically, Ren noticed. There was no fear or apprehension in them. The only thing he could read was pity. It made sense, of course, as he knew the professor to be a Sympath from the time he attended his first lecture years ago. The man probably sensed his unease with the situation. Of course, Ren did not need an ability to spot the rhythmic bouncing of the man's leg and the way his hands would repeatedly clench and release as he sat in one of the four available chairs in the room. His face may have been resolute and calm, but his body told a different story.

"And, as you may already know, you will experience less negative side effects if you offer no resistance to the extraction," she concluded. "Are we ready to begin?"

"I would like to be able to teach my next class in two hours, so the sooner we begin, the sooner I can return to my students," his voice may have been soft, but the piercing look he shot Kimiko was anything but.

Ren suppressed the desire to give the man a round of applause for that.

He chose to sit beside the professor, using him as a sort of barrier between him and the woman who has been making his skin crawl since the moment they had met. True to his word, Ogata offered no resistance and their entry into his mindscape was seamless. He fervently hoped all of the extractions would be this simple.

Ogata's memory archives took the form of a sunny, home office with tall, double-hung windows, hanging potted plants and a large, mahogany desk that spanned the entire length of three of the walls. On top of it were stacks of booklets bound in bristol board-type paper with large staples. He had the initial impression of a script when he first laid eyes on them. His presumption was confirmed upon opening one of the booklets to see the man's memories within. Every moment of his life was inscribed on these pages as if they were the dialogue from a screenplay, complete with stage directions. The sheer variety of memory archives he had the opportunity to witness never ceased to amaze him.

"So, what exactly are we looking for?"

"That information is on a need-to-know basis," Kimiko chastised lightly while skimming through one of the other booklets from the desk. "And you don't need to know."

He chose not to respond and simply shrugged before replacing the script he held and wandering to the other side of the room to examine one of the plants, letting the vines fall through his fingers as he idly stroked the waxy leaves. Content to ignore the woman, he focused on trying to enjoy the peaceful garden scene he could see through the windows instead of skimming through the memories on the desk in front of him. There was enough unsolicited intrusion taking place already without him adding insult to injury.

A peal of derisive laughter distracted him from his impromptu meditation and he looked over to where the woman stood in spite of himself. Her shoulders were shaking and she was hunched slightly over the booklet she held.

"Oh, this girl is absolutely _precious,_ " she sounded more mocking than impressed. "She actually complained to him about being bullied. What did she expect?!"

Ren remained silent, wary that she would reprimand him again if he asked any further questions. Not so much because he feared he would face some sort of disciplinary action, but more due to the fact that he already hated interacting with her despite spending less than half a day with her. Plus, he did not want to entertain any discussion she might want to have about the subject of bullying. He got the feeling that they had very differing opinions on the matter.

The scene through the window suddenly seemed exponentially more interesting and he returned his attention to it.

"Hey, you had to work with this girl, didn't you? You poor thing," she said with an air of overdramatized pity. "I can't imagine how frustrating it must've been to work with someone so entitled just because she was a Dud who was temporarily admitted into the Academy."

A silent cheer was all he allowed himself for not making any physical or verbal indication that he was affected by her words. His body twisted ever so slightly, but he chose not to validate her by looking her in the eye when he replied. Additionally, it made it easier to maintain a tone of indifference as he did so.

"I see you've done your research about me."

"Well," he could almost hear the preening in her tone. "I've always been a fan, but I made sure I was up-to-date on your recent exploits once I heard we'd be working together."

"You flatter me," he gave a dry, monotone chuckle.

The clarity of the sound of her voice told him she was looking directly at him. Thus, he knew, he could not remain with his back turned to her for long, lest he appear as if he were hiding something. He also wanted his suspicions confirmed. Slowly, he turned to face her, a humoring smile already pasted on his lips.

It took only a few moments and a quick scan with his eyes to see the script in her hand and the others she had pulled from the stacks to rest on the desk beside her. They were all recent and around the same time frame, judging by the newness of their condition and the fact that they all had the same color cover. Despite his flippant remarks to his boss regarding the seeming coincidence of this investigation and Kyoko's departure, having it confirmed in front of him nearly sent his heart plummeting to his shoes.

There was no doubt in his mind as to what they were investigating. The timing and Kimiko's remarks seemed to solidify it. Still, he had no idea exactly how much they knew, or suspected, about Kyoko. He also could not understand their approach. Why the secrecy and the extractions? Why would they involve him directly in the investigation when she was the person of interest with whom he had recent contact? Considering the lack of forthcoming information, he knew getting a straight answer just from asking would never happen. He supposed he would have to go along on this bizarre ride and see where it took him, collecting whatever tidbits of information he could along the way.

That thought gave him an idea. One that he was not completely sure would even work. But, he supposed it could not hurt to try.

* * *

 **HOW 'BOUT THE POWER TO KILL A YAK FROM 200 YARDS AWAY… WITH MIND BULLETS? So, I actually got sick earlier this week and managed to type all of 33 words for this chapter before I couldn't focus and had to go lie down. As luck would have it, I was recovered enough by yesterday afternoon to finish half of it and completed the rest of it today. I didn't get as much time as I usually prefer to proof and edit so, if it's a little choppy, that's why.**

 **As double luck would have it, it's also my birthday. So I sort of gave myself a present by finishing this... for you to read... which is probably more of a present for you, really. Eh, whatever. I'll count it as a win.**

 **I would advise expecting more late updates in the future as the holidays tend to make it harder to find time to write. But I will definitely find time to write! Until then, I suppose. See you all next chapter!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	24. Stratagem

**CHAPTER 23: STRATAGEM**

Ren hated Kimiko with the burning intensity of every star in the known universe, of this he was absolutely certain. Every word she spoke, every gesture and look only served to add fuel to the inferno he had kindled. It was not only that she constantly threw herself at him at every possible juncture that bothered him; he could easily ignore that with the patience and practice of someone who had avoided personal relationships for the majority of his adult life. No, it was the fact that her sole purpose for being paired with him—regardless of whatever the eventual endgame it led to—involved her investigating the one person he sent away to avoid a situation such as this.

He would not let anyone hurt Kyoko.

Which brought him to the second order of business, who currently stood in the small room they were using for their extractions. Hearing the name of their appointment that day brought forth a confusing myriad of emotions that he was not eager to explore. He knew that name as he had heard it repeatedly from Kyoko's lips. Try as he might to ignore what he felt, there was one sentiment that came to the fore. Resentment.

Shotaro Fuwa was next on the list of people of whom he was not very fond at the moment.

However, for all of his bravado and ego, Ren was keenly aware of the scared young man hiding just beneath the surface. It was easy to see that he knew there was something odd about the entire situation, but he tried his hardest to shrug it off as if none of it bothered him. Considering he was one of the few people that knew Kyoko the best, this was probably a good attitude for this particular situation. At the very least, it did not make him appear as if he had something to hide.

If anything, it was satisfying to watch him shamelessly flirt with Kimiko; all leering eyes and crooked grins. Were this any other occasion than the current one, he would almost feel compelled to offer the man his profuse thanks for giving that woman a taste of her own medicine.

With the formalities out of the way, courtesy of Kimiko's boilerplate disclaimer, they were ready to get started. Sho was, surprisingly, non-combative about the entire thing and followed whatever instructions he was given. Ren guessed this was probably not the first time he had to endure lines of questioning considering the town he hailed from. This was, most likely, old hat to him. He felt a twinge of sympathy knowing what he must have gone through despite knowing that he was out of town when the incident happened.

Sho's memories were stored in plastic cases, like video discs on tall, white shelves of a fairly large room sparsely populated by modern, minimalist furniture. A large screen along one wall had a slot below it where the discs could be inserted for viewing. Kimiko immediately went to where the newer disks were shelved, dragging a finger along the spines of the cases.

"It's a shame we can't make popcorn in here," she mused while reading the dates printed on each case. "We could've had a nice movie date."

Ren could only respond with a noncommittal grunt and watched her settle into the couch situated across from the screen. She patted the cushion next to her, looking at him with an eager grin.

"Well don't just stand awkwardly over there. Come, join me."

"I thought I was not allowed to know about whatever it is you're investigating," he eyed her dubiously.

"And you won't," she winked, he wondered if it was possible to develop hives just from a look. "Unless I tell you explicitly what I've been assigned to do, all you can do is make assumptions."

He spent several seconds trying to decide if there was a way for him to politely refuse her invitation without any repercussions. Realizing he was backed into a corner, he gave in with a sigh and made sure to sit more than an arms-length distance from her. To say this was an unideal situation was an understatement. How was he going to implement his plan if he had to sit beside her the entire time they were there?

Sitting through her little viewing party would have been less unbearable were it not for the fact that every memory she chose to watch in its entirety happened to feature Kyoko somewhere in them. While it was nice to see her face, he found watching her days of domesticity with Sho to be rather irritating. It was plainly obvious, to anyone watching, how dedicated she was to him while he continuously took her efforts for granted. It wore at his heart and he soon felt a dull throbbing behind his eyes. The errant, disdainful remarks Kimiko would throw out in between were not helping.

Perhaps Sho was not a good choice to include in his scheme.

He would have committed to that decision, had he not seen the memory of his last conversation with Kyoko before she left. On one hand, it felt intrusive to witness such a private moment between them. On the other, however, his impression of the man was altered to lean more in his favor. On a completely different hand that was not originally included in the initial assessment, it saddened and embarrassed him to know that both he and Sho were incapable of having an honest discourse with Kyoko without her initiating it.

With each new memory disc she inserted, Kimiko sat closer and closer to him. They played what was essentially an odd round of draughts as every advance she made forced a retreat of equal measure from him. Realizing that he was losing ground to her, he switched tactics and, instead, offered to retrieve the memories for her. The benefits of this arrangement were twofold; Ren was able to get some much needed breathing room from his ever-advancing predator and he could surreptitiously carry out his original objective before he was waylaid by second thoughts.

"Would you like me to get another one for you?" he asked, his polite smile in full force.

"Oh, how kind of you," she cooed.

He tried to ignore the sickly chills running down his spine at the sound of her voice.

She pointed to an area on one of the emptier shelves and asked him to pull one from a particular date. Ren swallowed the lump that formed, unbidden, in his throat when he reached for that particular memory. It was from the day Kyoko left.

Part of him honestly wanted to know whether or not Kyoko tried to contact him before her departure. He hoped that, whatever she did, would not give away her true reason for leaving. Steadying his hand, he reached for the case and slowly walked over to the television. Removing one memory and replacing it with another, he deliberately took his time returning it to its designated spot on the shelves so that he performed each task at the same speed. Thus, the way his hands lingered on the disc before he placed it in the slot went completely unnoticed.

Little did Kimiko know that all he needed was to touch the memory for it to work.

Ren should not have been surprised that Kyoko left something for Sho. The two of them had shared an entire childhood and adolescence together, it would have been more surprising if she had not. True to her style, she left him something that only had meaning between the two of them. Judging by the pleased surprise in Sho's voice as he pulled the pudding cups from the bag, they must have been his favorite.

"She already said she'd be leaving," he heard Sho mumble to himself. "Don't know why she felt she had to apologize three times over for it."

So the treats were her way of saying sorry. He mused quietly, keeping his face neutral as he continued to watch the memory. Something told him she was not just apologizing for the same thing thrice. Knowing her, the most plausible explanation was that she had three separate reasons.

 _'I left without saying goodbye.'_

 _'I can't tell you where I'm going.'_

 _'I don't know if, or when, I'll ever see you again.'_

He wondered if Sho realized that yet. But, more importantly, he hoped Kimiko had not.

When the extraction was over, it took approximately five minutes for Sho to regain consciousness. Ren breathed a silent sigh of relief at this as he had deliberately tried to be more gentle than he usually was. When the man stood up, Kimiko thanked him for his cooperation in her usual, false professional manner and Ren only just refrained from rolling his eyes.

It was a good thing he managed to do so as he caught Sho staring oddly at him before he turned to leave. His brow furrowed and his lips twisted to one side as if he wanted to say something. However, his features quickly flattened out and he gave Ren a curt nod. He returned the gesture and watched the man leave the room.

Looking away from the door just as it closed, he was able to redirect his attention to the woman in the room before she realized he was looking elsewhere. He gave her a plastic smile as she prattled on about when their next appointment would be the following day. Ren half-listened to her, picking up only the essential information he knew he would need and ignoring the rest. Once she seemed appeased by his reactions, she dismissed him for the day and he was only too happy to comply.

He was several meters away when he spotted Sho making his way across Academy grounds. A petite brunette approached him, happily throwing her arms about his waist and stretching up on her toes to press her lips to his in greeting. Ren supposed he would have been upset at the sight if the young woman was someone else, especially after witnessing Sho's behavior towards Kimiko before his extraction. In all fairness, he should have been upset regardless, but being judgmental was a waste of his time and emotions. None of that mattered to him.

The only thing that mattered was protecting _her_.

* * *

It was official, Kyoko hated meditating. There was something about trying to completely clear her mind that seemed utterly counterintuitive. Even more so now that her mind was crowded with a plethora of thoughts, doubts and questions since her exodus from the Academy. It was not exactly easy to just erase them and trying to eliminate them one-by-one only caused others to take their place.

Still, here she sat, eyes closed and trying her hardest to empty her mind while Kotetsu Uesugi silently watched over her from the opposite end of the room.

When he said that she needed to control how her emotions and thoughts affected her, he was not wrong. Kyoko explained to Kotetsu the circumstances behind her ability and how it had only been triggered by past emotional situations in the most general terms she could without betraying the identities or involvement of anyone else. As such, his first order of business was to remove that particular variable from the equation so that she could learn to control her ability without the need to place herself in stressful situations. She had gotten by thus far by avoiding feeling altogether, but he warned her that it was only a matter of time before everything she tucked behind her placid mask would escape. It was something she had heard before, but it did not make it any less true.

Meditation would improve her focus, he said. It would allow her to find a place of peace where she could anchor herself and wield her ability more effectively. Secretly, she scoffed at the idea. She already had a peaceful place she could retreat to. It served as her private sanctuary when her days had been far too trying.

Perhaps that was what he wanted her to do?

The comfort of her memory archives wrapped around her like a soothing hug. She sat, mesmerized by the dance of colored light reflecting off the surface of the pond. Dragging one finger lightly across the water's surface, she watched the ripples spread out from the point of contact.

A sharp crack against her knuckles forcefully dragged her out of her mindscape.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

Kyoko's eyes flew open and she saw the older man standing over her with a wooden ruler in his hands.

"Retreating into your mindscape is cheating," her instructor said sharply. "While it can be a good way of finding your focus, you leave yourself open as you are blind to your surroundings."

While she wanted to know exactly how he was able to figure out what she was doing, she set that curiosity aside in favor of defending herself.

"I assure you I can do this while still remaining completely aware."

The man gave her an indignant snort and crossed his arms. The expression on his face was a clearer indication of his disbelief than any words he could have spoken. She sighed and closed her eyes once more.

"Would you prefer if I demonstrated for you?"

"And how do you plan on doing that?" he asked, still unconvinced.

"Just keep interacting with me," she suggested with a shrug. "Talk to me, walk around the room, ask me to do something. I don't care."

Once she was back in her memory archives, she heard Kotetsu walking around the room. He asked her where he was in relation to where she sat every so often and she would answer accurately, often pointing a finger directly at where he was standing. The occasions in which he tried tiptoeing softly through the room or attempted throwing his voice to make it sound like it was coming from somewhere else were all unsuccessful. Each time, she was able to correctly identify where he was.

On his final attempt, he crept up beside her and raised the ruler he had been holding, intent on rapping on her knuckles once more. On the downswing, her hand reached up and stopped him by holding his wrist. Kyoko opened her eyes and looked up at the man, her mouth set in challenging defiance.

"Do you still not believe me?"

Pulling his hand out of her grip, Kotetsu walked away to place the ruler on a nearby desk. When he turned around, he folded his arms and eyed her carefully.

"Who taught you to do that?"

"A… friend of mine taught me the basics," she answered with forced nonchalance. "I've since had ample time to get better at it."

"They must have been a very talented telepath."

Kyoko could only nod, for fear of her lips betraying her.

"Well, then I think it's time we had a chat about what your ability actually _is_ ," he leaned against the desk. "I know you've been careful to reveal too much about yourself and your past. Whether it's for your own safety or mine, I don't really care. However, this is one bandage we would be prudent to rip off sooner rather than later."

She mumbled her response at first and he sternly bade her to speak up.

"I-it's time manipulation," Kyoko said a bit louder. "I'm a chronopath, I guess?"

Whatever shock he was experiencing in that moment, Kotetsu was quite adept at hiding it. His gaze never wavered and his hands never twitched a muscle. She supposed that it should not have been much of a surprise. At one point in time, his ability was once a rarity as well.

"And you're absolutely sure that's your ability?"

"I have at least three confirmed events during which I have stopped or slowed time," she held up three fingers for emphasis. "Two of them were witnessed by another person."

The man raised an eyebrow at this, but that was the only indication of a reaction.

"And have you tried to use the ability at any time between those events?"

"I have not, for obvious reasons," Kyoko shook her head. "To be honest, I'm not really sure _how_ to use my ability in the first place."

"Your ability is a part of you, just like any one of your fingers or your legs," he explains, holding up his hand and wiggling his fingers to demonstrate. "As such, it requires exercise to keep it in working condition. Without this exercise, you risk atrophy."

He let his wrist go limp and his hand fell forward.

"So you're saying my ability has atrophied?"

"It would explain why you can only use it during stressful, fight-or-flight situations. As it is now, your ability can only work when fueled by adrenaline and overwhelming emotions."

"And how do we get it back into 'working condition,' as you put it?"

The smile that spread across Kotetsu's face rendered Kyoko, understandably, fearful. There was a glint in his eye that only solidified her suspicion.

"You will have to go through a sort of physical therapy."

She winced, "That sounds like it's going to be painful and a lot of work."

"Oh yes," he nodded, smile still in place. "It probably will be."

Kyoko groaned.

He sent her home with a paper that had instructions for the 'exercise' she was supposed to do until the next time she she saw him. All of that effort she spent trying to graduate from school early only to have homework again, she realized, much to her chagrin. When she finally came to terms with the fact that she needed to learn how to control her ability, she knew the process would be difficult. However, she was still not prepared for this.

She took another look at the paper before stuffing it into her purse. The first part of the instructions seemed easy enough; all she had to do was recall the most recent time she ever used her ability. Thankfully, she had access to her handy memory archive for that. It was the second part that made her the most uncomfortable.

She had to revisit that memory, over and over again.

According to Kotetsu, it was to enable her to break the scene down into its component parts. He said there had to be a moment when her ability was triggered and, in that moment, she would have felt it happen. There would be a sensation, a twinge or prickling, that accompanied it. Her task was to find it and familiarize herself with it; how it felt, what it did and where it was located. When she gave him a questioning look regarding that last part, he said that abilities had a particular area on the body from where most people could feel them actuate.

That was certainly a new one. No one she knew that had an ability ever told her that they could feel it in a certain part of their body. Her instructor laughed and said that they were probably not tuned in to themselves enough to notice.

There were several hours remaining until she had to report for her shift at the diner. Thus, Kyoko decided there was no time like the present to get a head start on her assignment. At any other time, she would have called herself insane to subject herself to watching and re-watching the same, painful argument between her and Ren. But, according to the man in whose hands she placed her faith and her future, this was a necessity. So, once she was back at her apartment, she settled herself in for a few hours of what was sure to be emotional torture.

By the fifth time she watched the memory in her archives, her throat was sore from sobbing. By the tenth time, she had to make a mad dash to her bathroom, narrowly avoiding her stomach emptying its contents on her floor. She considered taking a break after that, but decided to push forward. With her stomach already devoid of all food, there was nothing much worse that could happen short of her passing out.

By the sixteenth time, she was numb, inside and out.

However, it allowed her to analyze everything with a logical eye. She was no longer tearing herself apart at the sight of Ren's face and the coldness of his words. There was just enough detachment now that she could almost pinpoint the moment her ability activated. It was akin to fumbling around in the dark for an object, fingers groping at nothing until they finally found purchase.

And find it, she did. There was a distinct moment right before everything went still. She felt an ache that spread through her and then out in every direction, like the satisfying burn of muscle when stretching one's limbs outward. But, she was not yet certain as to where exactly it originated. Picking the same flower from where it reappeared on the nearby shrub, she let another droplet fall into the water to replay the memory one last time.

There! There it was!

Kyoko pushed her hand into the pond, effectively stopping the memory at that exact moment. The tingling of the water danced across her palm as she tried to feel what she felt on that day again. It was not coming from a limb, nor was it coming from her head as she originally assumed. She was close, but not quite there.

With a frustrated grunt, she got up again and went for a different memory. This time, she looked at the day she found Sho in the library. It only took three playbacks to find the right moment. Focusing again, she found that she was still unable to get a specific location other than guessing that it might be her stomach. Kyoko sighed and realized it was probably time to move on. There was only one other memory remaining that she could consult, but it was the longest and most vivid one she had. The trek to her secondary archive where the giant rose resided seemed longer this time, but she was grateful at least that the large wall and finicky door were gone now that her memories had returned.

The apprehension she felt just from hearing Kuon's voice calling for her in the forest inundated her enough to the point that she nearly jumped at the sound of the branch cracking loudly underneath her younger self. Still, there was no mistaking it this time. She was absolutely certain of it the moment she felt it plummet to her shoes upon hearing that dreadful sound.

It came from her heart.

* * *

 **OH, LOOK, I STILL REMEMBER HOW TO WRITE THIS! Who would've thought?! Well, I hope this helps you through the mid-week slump. Now I can go slack o-I mean work on the rest of this story. Yeah. Totally gonna do that.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	25. Progress

**CHAPTER 24: PROGRESS**

The metronome clicked with a steady rhythm that seemed to taunt her from across the room. Kyoko had spent nearly a week on this practice exercise alone and she wondered if her sanity was being adversely affected as she seemed to have acquired a conditioned response. Anytime she heard the ticking of a timer or the sharp clack of high-heeled shoes on pavement, her mood would instantly change to one of agitation and despair. She had taken to covering the alarm clock in her apartment with a towel just so she could sleep at night.

Forget controlling her ability. Just trying to _use_ it was proving to be difficult enough.

Kotetsu did not seem the least bit perturbed by it, however. She had a sneaking suspicion that he appreciated being able to quietly do paperwork in his office while she seethed in another room trying to make a musical teaching device stop moving without touching it. The thought that he was doing it on purpose just to frustrate her was hard to banish. He seemed hellbent on curing her of some narcissistic attitude he was convinced she harbored after their conversation following her discovery of where her ability originated.

"So, it's your heart, is it?" he'd asked her that morning when she returned.

"Yes."

Concentrating on the deep furrow of his brow seemed the best option for distracting herself from the suffocating silence in the room. But not for long. Eventually, she yielded and gave in to her curiosity.

"Is that strange or rare or something?"

The older man's brow wrinkled further and he frowned at her, shaking his head slowly.

"Just because you have an uncommon ability doesn't make you special in every way, you know."

"I-I wasn't…"

"The sooner you stop fixating on yourself, the better it will be for your progress."

"You want me to… _not_ focus on myself to figure out how to use my ability?"

Kyoko tilted her head at him in confusion and she watched her instructor take a deep breath before slowly letting it out.

"In a manner of speaking, yes. While you _do_ need to focus on yourself for this, the 'you' that you're currently focused on is the wrong one. You need to find the right one and focus on that."

"And how do I do that?"

"That is not something I can tell you," he shook his head again. "Only you can tell yourself which 'you' is the right 'you' to focus on. Understood?"

"Clear as mud, Sir," she said with a mock salute.

His grunt signified the end of their conversation and he went about taking a small metronome from one of the storage cupboards in the room. Placing it on a desk in the far corner, he moved the weight along the pendulum arm and set it at one hundred beats per minute. He released the arm from where it was locked and it sprung forward with a twang before starting to swing steadily from side to side. Turning back to her, he folded his arms and gave her a stern look.

"We'll start with an audio cue for your training exercises," he pointed to the metronome. "Since this is set to move at a constant tempo, it'll be easier for you to hear when you've slowed or stopped time."

Kyoko only nodded in understanding, waiting for him to continue.

"You, most likely, will not get it right away, but I want you to keep trying until you do. Even if you have to keep coming back here and sit in this room by yourself for two hours each day."

Thus began her torture.

The first few days, she was content to sit quietly at one of the many small desks in the room that were neatly arranged into rows. Once she realized she gained nothing from that method, she took to restlessly pacing the room, making complex patterns with her feet as she wove her way around each desk. Eventually, she resigned herself to sitting on the floor. It was the lowest spot in the room and an accurate representation of how low she felt each time she made another fruitless attempt.

This was where she found herself, yet again, trying desperately to get something, _anything_ to happen.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

Tick… tick… tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

With a huff, she slammed her hands against the floor. Why was this so difficult? Everyone else made it look so simple, so effortless and yet, there she was, sitting on the cold wooden floor with nothing but a burning in her chest and the beginnings of a headache. She tried so hard to not let it get to her and, instead, focus on her exercise, but the self-doubts and admonishments were relentless and crept in through even the tiniest cracks in her defense. She hated them.

What's more, she hated that they used her own voice to mock her.

 _You ran away to escape all of this, remember? Why are you even bothering?_

Because she needed to be able to control it, she knew that and told it to herself repeatedly.

 _Then this should be a piece of cake for you, shouldn't it? You've done it several times by now, though it seems like you can only use it when_ ** _he's_** _nearby. Is that what you need? Do you need him to hold your hand through_ ** _this_** _too?_

She only needed him because they had collectively hidden the missing pieces of their memories. And, what was this about hand-holding? If memory served her correct, she took the lead more often than he did.

Why was she even entertaining that train of thought in the first place? This wasn't about him.

"Leave him out of this," she muttered aloud, the echo of her voice in the empty room gave its hoarseness and fatigue extra emphasis.

 _Then, why can't you, the girl who stopped time for an entire town, stop a single metronome in an empty room?_

"I'm not that girl anymore."

That girl existed solely in her memories, ones that she had only recently regained. The balance of her life had been lived as if that experience never happened. She lived as if she never had an ability, as if she had never Awakened.

At least, not until recently.

Thus, she was starting from scratch. Like a fledgling timidly stretching its wings for the first time or a baby stumbling about trying to put one foot in front of the other.

Kyoko reeled backwards with a gasp, nearly hitting her head on the desk behind her. At last, she understood exactly what Kotetsu had been trying to impress upon her. She really was focused on the wrong part of herself. Somehow, a deep-seated hubris had made it's home in her head the day her memories returned. Just the knowledge that she had accomplished something that attracted the attention of countries the world over caused her to make assumptions that she already had what it took to wrangle her ability like any other trained Augmented.

Assumptions that also came with an annoying voice in her head.

Well, she was about to shut that voice up for good.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

Tick… tick… tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick… tick… tick.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

She released the breath she forgot she held and noisily sucked in another lungful of air. That was the closest she had come since she started these exercises a week ago. A brief look at the — blessedly silent — clock on the wall told her she did not have enough time to make another attempt and a disappointed sigh left her lips. Pushing with her hands and feet, she stood and took a moment to stretch.

The metronome still clicked away happily in its corner and she stalked over to it, stopping the arm mid-swing and latching it back into its stationary position. She returned it to its designated spot in the storage cupboard, closing the door behind it as softly as possible although all she wanted to do was slam it shut just to spite that wretched device. Sighing again, she told herself there was no point in taking her frustrations out on an object that could not defend itself.

The walk to Kotetsu Uesugi's office was more of a slow, deliberate trudge, but she had agreed to always check in with him before she left for the day. Upon reaching his doorway, she found him hunched over a stack of papers on his desk. Her sluggish feet continued to carry her over the threshold and into the room and she dropped herself unceremoniously into the chair across from his desk, the force of her landing pushing a loud, exasperated breath from her lips. Kotetsu looked up from his papers and raised an eyebrow at her.

"I didn't know it would be this exhausting," she allowed herself o punctuate her sentence with a tiny whine of complaint.

"Exercising anything is tiring," he offered her only a shrug as consolation. "The same goes for abilities. That's why overextension causes veiling in telepaths and burnout in pyrokinetics."

Kyoko's lips pressed flat and she eyed the man with no small amount of skepticism. Before she could stop herself, she responded with the temerity found only in impulsive actions bred from fatigue.

"Do hydrokinetics get _drained_ and do anemokinetics get _winded_ as well?"

"Well, yes, they do," this frown was one of confusion rather than anger. "I'm glad you paid attention to the terminology in class, but that's not quite the point I was trying to make."

She bit back a groan and slowly ran a hand down her face. Whoever came up with those terms was either literal to a fault or thought themselves a comedian. But, she was letting herself get sidetracked to delay her next words. So, going against her desire to hunch forward and protectively curl her body inward, she forced herself to sit up as straight as possible.

"I wanted to let you know that I finally figured out what you meant about fixating on the wrong 'me,'" her voice was small, but grateful. "I felt I should thank you for that."

The older man waved a hand in dismissal of her words and shook his head. Folding his arms across his chest, he leaned forward against his desk as if he were about to divulge an important secret. It made her lean forward too, inexplicably eager to hear the next words he spoke.

"I realized the error in having you consult your memories about your ability once you came back to tell me the results. I could see in your face that you were allowing yourself to be haunted by a memory," his trademark contemplative frown was back on his face. "That was my mistake and I apologize."

Her brow wrinkled and she righted herself in her chair.

"One of these days you need to tell me how, exactly, you're so perceptive."

"Years of practice and exposure," he replied with a short laugh.

"I should have known," she groaned at his simplistic answer but he continued on, unperturbed.

"Memories are some of the heaviest burdens we carry with us through life," both his voice and his face were serious as stone and she listened intently to his words. "They help shape who we are and how we react to other people and events. They are a source of both joy and pain and a myriad of emotions in between. There's a reason each one of us has created a shrine for them in our own minds."

"And you just happened to figure out that mine were holding me back?"

"You are a young woman with an unusual ability who keeps a lot of secrets and only sparingly offers information regarding your past," he shook his head. "It wasn't too difficult to extrapolate from there and realize that you were being held hostage by the idea of who you _thought_ you were supposed to be."

Everything he said was completely logical and sounded like it was no more than common knowledge. However, she felt like she had been clued in on the biggest revelation of the century. She thought of Kuon and how he shouldered the burden of a falsified memory for years until they met again. How it changed him from the bright, jovial child he once was into the seemingly cold and unfeeling man who had aged well beyond his years. If anything, being able to forget the devastating memory from her past was a significant benefit.

A benefit she reaped at the cost of someone else's happiness.

Kyoko shook her head once. No, that was not the case at all. They both agreed to forget it ever happened. It was Kuon who decided to alter the agreement without telling her. The people they became were the products of the choices they made when they were younger and she would have to live with that just like he did.

But that did not mean she would do nothing to learn from it.

While she had her doubts in the past as to whether or not she was doing the right thing by trusting in Kotetsu, they were now completely gone. This was the path she would walk so that she could grow and develop in a way she saw fit instead of at the whims of an Academy.

"I agreed to cover some morning shifts for Chiori but I will be back in a few days to keep working on this," she said as she rose from her seat. "Is that alright?"

A wide smile crossed the mans face and he nodded. Sitting back in his chair with his arms still crossed, he looked excessively pleased by her response. She could not help but smile a bit herself, though sadly, at the sight.

"You are the only person that is expecting you to make rapid progress," he chided. "The only thing _I_ expect is that you don't give up."

* * *

"So, what was it like when you went to Uesugi's for tutoring?" Kyoko asked the following afternoon.

She was clocking out at the end of her shift when Chiori arrived to take over for her. The two crossed paths in the back room and they stopped to chat. Somewhere along the course of their work relationship — Kyoko was hesitant to call it a friendship just yet — they had fallen into this routine whenever they had separate shifts.

"I… what… were you snooping around his student files or something?" Chiori spluttered. "He assured us that our records would be kept confidential."

"They are and, for the record, I didn't look at them. I had a hunch based on the way you wouldn't talk about him, like you were deliberately trying to distance yourself from any association with him," Kyoko made a show of smoothing out her hair in the reflection of one of the glass jars on the shelf beside the time clock as she spoke. "But, I wasn't completely sure until just now."

The young woman let out a low whistle and a chuckle as she shook her head.

"Dammit, Natsu. You really are way too good at that."

Kyoko only shrugged in response and a small smile twisted her lips.

"Why would you want to know anyway? Aren't his classes in session when you're over there?"

"He specifically requested that I show up when he doesn't have classes," she shook her head. "I'm only there to help him with the upkeep of the place. I have no ability, so it's not as if I could help him with his lessons."

"Then, I ask again, why would you want to know?"

"Call it an Unaugmented's irrepressible curiosity."

"More like your own nosiness," she snorted.

"Well, if it makes you uncomfortable—" Kyoko's words sounded accommodating, but the tilt of her head and the challenge in her eyes told a different story.

"What's your angle, Kitazawa?" Chiori squinted at her.

"Nothing, honestly," she held up her hands in placation. "He's just so grumpy all the time that I wondered how his students put up with it or if he was a different person in the classroom."

"Well, the grumpiness is pretty much his signature at this point, but the good students — the ones who learned to look past that and see how valuable the lessons he provides really are — they know it's worth it to keep coming back to class."

"That's high praise coming from you," Kyoko rolled her eyes.

Chiori looked around them for a moment, surreptitiously checking to make sure the room was empty before she leaned closer and spoke in a near-whisper.

"I will deny this until my dying day, so don't think you can go around telling this to anyone but, before I started his classes, the most I could do was turn warm water into lukewarm water," the words came out with a slight hiss as she tried to keep anyone from overhearing their conversation. "So, if you refuse to believe anyone else, believe me when I tell you he is as good as everyone says he is."

"That must not have been easy," Kyoko said before wincing internally, realizing too late that 'Natsu' was not one to empathize with others.

"It wasn't and I wanted to quit more than once, but I stuck with it and I learned a lot about myself in the process," she leaned back and her voice resumed it's previous volume. "Now, does that answer your question?"

Her face was scrunched into a look of confusion, but Kyoko nodded

"But you're not the first person to have learned to improve their own ability because of him," she mused aloud. "Why the secrecy?"

Chiori shook her head and let out a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a sigh.

"If you knew my family, you wouldn't have to ask such a question."

With that, she walked away toward the locker room. Kyoko gave the space she vacated a blank stare for a moment before turning on her heels to exit through the back door. In one short conversation, she had learned more about her coworker than she assumed she would. Her sole reason for asking was merely to find out if anyone else had to endure similar struggles to hers. Since she had to do her training in complete secrecy, this was the closest she could get to commiserating with a classmate.

Unbeknownst to her, Chiori had just given Kyoko one of the most impactful pep talks. The walk back to her apartment found Kyoko holding her head a little higher, her chin jutting out with just a bit more pride than it normally did.

Perhaps she would have to reconsider classifying Chiori as a 'tentative friend' after all.

* * *

He never would have imagined that running a small tutoring facility would generate quite so much paperwork. Between making sure his licensing was up to date and filed with the appropriate governmental offices, the progress reports for his students as well as notes he kept on each of them detailing the limitations of their abilities, how they responded to various teaching methods and ideas for how to get them to improve, it seemed never-ending. The potential for him to be physically buried underneath a mountain of papers were he to neglect it for even a day was a real, if irrational, fear.

Still, Kotetsu Uesugi would never trade any of it for the world.

The work he did now had far more meaning to it than anything he did in the thirty-plus years he spent under the employment of his Academy. It got him out of bed every morning and fueled his purposeful strides to his office. As long as the world still had Augmenteds, he would still be needed.

The soft sound of the ticking metronome in the classroom filtered down the hall and into his office and he smiled a little and shook his head. His most recent student was certainly an interesting challenge. Most of his charges were much younger, having Awakened but lacking the true understanding of their potential. This one was near adulthood, but her age was the only thing that set her apart from the others. She still fussed and fumed with the best of them whenever she ran into difficulties. And, like all of his other students, he could not wait to see how her ability flourished with the right amount of attention and perseverance.

However, he could not miss the sadness that often clouded her eyes when they spoke about her ability. While they both agreed, and insisted, upon keeping their relationship on a strictly need-to-know basis, he could not help but continue to notice the weight of the emotional baggage she bore. There was a secret much bigger than the bits and pieces she shared with him; he had told her as much and she never did deny it. He concluded that it was probably a secret he was better off never knowing.

The most he could do was instruct her as carefully as he could so that she would be able to decide how much she wanted that secret to affect her life.

He worried that she would be disheartened after their conversation a few days prior about her attitude and approach to her current assignment. But, she returned from her short hiatus raring to try again with an even stronger determination than before. It pleased him more than he would ever say that he continued to be right about her. He looked away from the papers on his desk and closed his eyes, letting his ears zero in on the sound of the metronome instead of tuning it out as usual.

Quite abruptly, the sound significantly increased in volume. It was almost as if the metronome was on the desk in front of him.

With a shake of his head, he opened his eyes to find that he was still alone in the office. His eyes opened wider still when he noticed what sat before him. A small scrap of paper, bearing a hastily drawn smiling face waved from side to side at him in an almost mocking manner. The paper was taped to the freely swinging arm of a metronome.

The very same one from the classroom down the hall.

* * *

The past two weeks were filled with brief extractions on, admittedly, insignificant people. Under most circumstances, Ren would never consider anyone who warranted an extraction to be insignificant. However, it was a testament to how torturous this entire assignment had been. He had taken to ranking people's significance based on their involvement in Kyoko's life.

By the end of the previous day's extraction, he had them categorically sorted with the person who lived next door to her during her residency in Academy housing at the top and that one orderly who spoke to her for less than thirty seconds after she collapsed the first time at the bottom.

He was bored.

He was frustrated.

He tried very, very hard to not let either of those two emotions show on his face in Kimiko's presence.

From what he could tell—which was very little considering how that infuriating woman fed him only the tiniest hints of information—someone was either trying to lure him into a false sense of security or they were truly running out of avenues to pursue. Of course, knowing who he was dealing with caused him to believe the former over the latter. Kimiko was a slimy individual. He knew that trusting her as far as he could throw her was giving her way too much leeway and comparing her to a snake was insulting to reptiles as a whole. He was better off expecting the worst and, hopefully, being pleasantly surprised.

This was not going to be one of those times.

While he was certainly surprised, there was nothing pleasant about it. He had learned to stop asking who was scheduled for the next extraction. It served only to give Kimiko another opportunity to speak to him and her constant overtures had long since worn on his last nerve. Plus, she seemed to enjoy withholding some information while disclosing others as if it were some sort of game to her. It was not one he wanted to play, so he stopped asking altogether.

Nonetheless, he wished in that moment that he _had_ asked.

Because, standing before him wearing a sour expression that almost identically matched his mood for the past few weeks, was Kanae Kotonami.

* * *

 **YOU'D THINK THAT THIS WAS ALL FOR NOW, BUT YOU'D BE WRONG. That's right, folks. I know you've already enjoyed this chapter so much.**

 **But, wait, there's MORE!**

 **Well, don't just sit/stand/slump/lie there, go read the next chapter!**

 **AUTHOR OUT (but not really, 'cause there's another chapter)!**


	26. Develop

**CHAPTER 25: DEVELOP**

Kanae walked into the office with an authoritative air that extinguished Kimiko's as if it were nothing more than a nearly spent candle flickering desperately before drowning in its own wax. She carried herself in a way that made onlookers feel like the smallest person in the room; an impressive feat, as far as Ren was concerned, since he was the tallest person there. She stopped once she was just inside the door and cast a disdainful look around the room before turning it on the other woman who stood across from her. Ren nearly drowned in the wave of relief he felt when she passed him over to focus on his colleague instead.

"I was informed that my presence was required on this date and time," she dropped the words coldly, slicing through the silence in the air with deadly precision. "So, I am here as requested and my superiors have been notified of my intended absence."

He could not help but notice the subtext behind her choice of words.

"Ah, you must be Miss Kotonami," Kimiko began in her usual friendly, placating tone once she recovered from the other woman's entrance. "I must thank you for being so prompt for your appointment. My name is Kimiko Morizumi, but you can just call me Kimiko."

"I'd prefer 'Miss Morizumi,' if you don't mind."

The last four words of her sentence were thrown in only maintain a facade of deference. Everyone in that room knew Kanae did not care in the least whether or not Kimiko minded. What had Ren perplexed for at least a minute was why she thought she had to show up like she was prepared for battle wearing an armor of frosty indifference. Thankfully, the conversation between both women — if one could even call it such — continued long enough for him to ponder in silence.

Of course, once he gave it proper consideration, it was fairly obvious. Kanae had come to the same conclusion as both he and Chief Takarada had. Whether that was due to Kyoko sharing a portion of her secrets with the young woman or Kanae making an educated guess remained to be seen. For both of their sakes, however, he hoped it was the latter.

Once Kimiko had completed her usual verbal disclaimers, most of which were received with no small amount of enthusiastic eye-rolling, she instructed Kanae to choose any one of the seats available in the room so that they could get started. Ren should not have been surprised when she defiantly remained where she stood.

But, he _was_ surprised when she proclaimed that she was perfectly comfortable with the extraction being done while she was standing.

Stuttered objections and requests to reconsider were offered by his less-than-likable associate. She tried, unsuccessfully, to convince Kanae that her decision was not ideal. Her words fell on deaf ears as Kanae waved her off with a hand, turning her nose up ever so slightly in condescension.

"I have to undergo regular, in-depth psychological scans to keep my position at the hospital, honey," Kanae rolled her eyes and huffed with impatience. "I could probably do this while taking someone's blood pressure at this point."

Kimiko took a deep breath and swallowed whatever snide remark that waited just behind her pursed lips and offered a strained smile instead.

"Considering the Inquisitor we have selected to do the extractions, it would be in your best interest to—"

Ren was about to interrupt her in his own defense when Kanae beat him to the punch. Wisely, he held his tongue and let her handle this herself. Knowing of her empathic abilities, he worked under the assumption that she was actively scanning Kimiko and himself and made sure to hint to her that he would neither discourage nor interfere. Her anger was currently directed fully at the other woman and he had no desire to take away any portion of that for himself.

"You think I'm afraid of _him_?!" she jabbed a thumb in his direction with a truncated laugh and he tried his best to look affronted. "As long as I don't offer any resistance, he has no reason to use force."

She looked over at him, her eyes scanning him in a detached manner from head to toe and back again in less than a second.

"Besides, marshmallow boy over here would most likely be in his cups if he knew he'd harmed an innocent again."

He probably should have at least defended his honor over her creative nickname for him.

"You say that like you know it for a fact," Kimiko challenged.

"You're the one that's gonna be inside my head," Kanae refused to back down. "I'm sure you'll find out if, and how, I do."

The two women glared at each other for several tense moments. Under normal circumstances, Ren would have at least attempted to be the peacekeeper. He knew he should be ashamed of the fact that he was actually enjoying their verbal catfight, but this entire ordeal had rendered him bereft of the capacity to care about anything that involved Kimiko. After a little over a week of dealing with boring extractions and her incessant flirting, this was just the reprieve he needed.

Kanae was the first to look away. Her eyes flitted to Ren briefly and, in that minuscule span of time, they formed a fast and immovable camaraderie.

 _'I don't like her,'_ her eyes said.

 _'Welcome to the club,'_ his own look responded.

"What an absolutely irritating, insufferable woman," Kimiko ranted once they were inside Kanae's mind.

Ren thought to himself that it was, indeed, a shame that any conversation between the pot and the kettle would most likely end in serious injuries.

Kanae's mind was as tidy as the person herself. Everything had its proper location down a seemingly endless hallway with blandly colored walls and pristine gray doors on either side. Each door was labelled, denoting what could be found beyond it, though some were rather vague in terms of wording. Ren could not help but wonder what was behind the door simply labelled as 'Food Over Flowers' but there was no time to be sidetracked.

The door to her archive looked just like the others only the nameplate beside it had 'Memories' printed on it in raised, white lettering. Beyond it, the room was fairly utilitarian in size, contents and layout. While Ren instantly recognized the room for what it was, Kimiko was having difficulties processing what she saw.

"Gross! What _is_ this place!?" she exclaimed in disgust.

Ren only rolled his eyes and looked around the room. The distinct smell of a mixture of chemicals permeated the air. There were wires strung overhead on which a number of sheets were pinned, their edges curled with the weight of moisture. Droplets of water sluiced down the slick sheets before congregating at the lowest hanging corner to plummet to the towel placed below. Along two adjacent walls were tall, wooden cabinets with wide, shallow drawers that were labeled by year. The other two walls featured counter tops full of various equipment, bottles with warning labels stored on shelves, trays and a sink over which a clock quietly ticked away. Everything was sterile and spotless and would have looked boringly normal if not for one thing.

The entire room was bathed in an eerie red light.

"This looks like the memory archives of a sociopath or something, right Ren?" Kimono asked with a small laugh and an air of flippancy. "I bet even some of the criminals you've extracted had nicer archives than this."

He fixed her with a cold stare from where he stood at the sink across the room. She had no idea of the countless number of memories he had suppressed from past extractions of actual criminals. Her comparison was as inaccurate as it was insensitive. The dim, dramatic lighting, it seemed, did wonders for making him look intimidating and she appeared to cower slightly. Taking advantage of that, he slowly walked closer, letting his height loom over her. Once he was within an arm's-length distance, he stopped.

"Do not claim to know, or understand, the things I have seen in my line of work," he said the words slowly, carefully. "Additionally, if you looked more closely at our surroundings, you would recognize where we are. I am sure you have at least seen places like this in movies have you not?"

For the briefest moment, Kimiko almost looked repentant and that was enough for him. Her eyes darted around the room for a few seconds before she looked back at him, still appearing to be confused. With a sigh, Ren looked around the room to be sure nothing sensitive would be damaged before walking over to the lightswitch panel near the entrance. Flipping the switches, the red lights were immediately doused and replaced by bright, yellow-white overhead lights.

"We're in a darkroom. A place where black and white photographs are manually processed."

"Oh," Kimiko breathed in a way that only just hinted at her embarrassment before she quickly recovered. "Well, I guess our little extractee has a photographic memory."

A wry grin formed on her lips as she eyed Ren, waiting for a response. Were she any other woman, he may have cracked a smile. Were she one woman in particular, he probably would have laughed. However, she was Kimiko Morizumi and that did not afford her any favor in his eyes. As such, he only offered a blank stare, blinking once and then again before she gave up with a sigh.

She stalked over to the cabinets and yanked open one of the drawers to reveal numerous 8x10 black and white photographs lining the bottom, each one resting atop the other but offset just enough that the top edges of the previous photos were still visible. With her hands still gripping the two brass knobs, she leaned against the front of the drawer to look at the contents in bewilderment. Looking over at Ren, who made sure to keep as much distance between them as possible, she raised a questioning eyebrow. He answered in kind.

"What exactly am I supposed to do with these?"

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean."

"Well, these are just… photographs," she stated and his eyebrow rose even further. "Everyone else's archives had memories that were recorded as text or video or something. How am I supposed to get a detailed memory from one still image?"

Ren looked thoughtfully at one of the images hanging on the wire above him. It was a photo taken from Kanae's point of view of both him and Kimiko standing in the office when she arrived. It made sense that this memory was still drying as it was extremely recent. Slowly, he reached up and touched the edge of the photograph with gentle fingers. At first, nothing happened but, before he could pull his hand away, the entire memory rushed through him like an almost light-speed recap of events. He envisioned the entire exchange of what had happened only several minutes prior.

Not only that, he felt it.

"Of course," he murmured aloud, looking over at Kimiko. "She's an empath."

"Which means…?" the woman prompted, flapping one hand in a circular motion to encourage him to explain quickly.

"You don't view the memories. You feel them"

He wiggled his fingers that were still touching the photograph for emphasis. She wrinkled her nose with a frown.

"I don't recall telling you anything about her. How did you know she's an empath?"

"Aside from the fact that it's printed on her employee identification badge?" he reveled in the fact that she had to look away to hide her discomfiture. "We've met before. Once."

"Oh?" she elongated the word, her curiosity piqued by his answer. "Do tell."

Lowering his hand, he extended a finger to point at the opened drawer in front of her.

"I'm sure you'll find out the details for yourself soon enough."

The coquettish giggle she let out was the same one that always seemed to reach right down his throat and trigger his gag reflex. She returned her focus to the drawer's contents and began sifting through the photos, touching some for shorter periods of time than others. He forced himself to ignore how much it irked him to see the mess she had made of the photos that were previously lined up so neat and orderly. Besides, he had more important things to do while Kimiko was otherwise distracted.

He reached up again to touch the same photograph as before, taking special care to do it slowly and idly as if he were doing it simply because he was forced to wait while his 'teammate' — and he used that word as loosely as possible — ransacked Kanae's other memories. A frown formed on his lips momentarily when he realized he could not do the same thing he had done to the memories of the others. Essentially, his attempt was being nullified either by the memory or by Kanae herself. Folding his arms, he stood in thought and looked around the room, hoping something would jump out at him and reveal the answer to his problem.

While nothing actually jumped, per se, a thought occurred to him when his eyes landed on Kimiko who was still in the process of making a spectacular mess. Ren was not keen on admitting that woman had inspired him in any way, but she at least gave him pause. That was the most credit he would ever give because it was less about her and more about what he had said to her mere moments before.

He had reminded her that Kanae was an empath. That, in turn, reminded him. He could not just alter her memories in the same manner as before. He had to put actual _feeling_ into it.

His feelings.

Well, he was essentially doing the telepathic equivalent of asking for a favor so, the least he could do was play by her rules. He tried again, but that time he made it a bit more personal, a bit more emotional. For his efforts, much to his surprise, he actually got a response. Something answered him back. Something that felt like gratitude. Kanae must have been thankful that he trusted her enough to enlist her help.

"Oh, you're in this one!" he heard Kimiko exclaim and immediately pulled back his hand to carefully watch her.

Her entire face scrunched inward as she inspected the memory further. It looked like someone had taken a vacuum to her nose and it inadvertently started sucking in the rest of her features. Ren considered laughing for exactly half a second.

"I see she has a history of being rude to people. She certainly was very unpleasant towards you when you tried to visit her little friend and see if she was alright."

"She had every right to be since I was the reason her friend was in the hospital in the first place," the plainness of his statement was in direct opposition to the indignation he felt.

"You already took the blame for it and, if what I was told is correct, you were even reprimanded for it," Kimiko's voice became more righteous with each additional word she spoke. "If anything, she should be thankful you actually went out of your way to make amends at all."

"I suppose not everyone is as… generous as you, Kimiko."

His brain and mouth fought against each other just to get the words out, but he hoped she would be flattered enough to stop talking about that particular day. Furthermore, he had no interest in confirming or denying any of whatever information she had been fed pertaining to him. Since he had no idea of what else she had seen in Kanae's memories without actually looking, it was safer to avoid any sort of conversation lest he accidentally incriminate himself or anyone else.

"She was right, however. You really do beat yourself up over harming an innocent, don't you?"

Well, there went that idea.

"Just because you found her disagreeable," he curled his lips as far as they would go into a disapproving frown. "Does not mean she was dishonest."

Hopefully that did it. He made it about her and Kanae in hopes that it took him out of the limelight. The smattering of polite reprimand he sprinkled in there was not a bad idea either. Something had to balance out the compliment he paid her earlier.

Whatever overawing presence he had earlier while the safelights were still on had left him and she only tilted her head to one side and smiled in a knowing way that gnawed at his insides.

"I guess she was right about a number of things."

The gnawing feeling only became stronger.

Kanae was out of the office almost within the minute both Ren and Kimiko left her mind. She spared only the time she needed for verbal confirmation that she was no longer needed and could continue about her day. Bidding them both a curt farewell, she rushed out the door without looking back.

Ren could not miss the look in her eyes when the briefly flicked to his in the moments before her hasty departure. While he lacked the discerning sensibility of an empath, he could have sworn he caught traces of remorse with a hint of an apology.

Apparently, there would be no need for him to seek out any further meals for the day as his body seemed to be content with feeding on itself.

Great.

"Well, that should be it for now, I think," Kimiko said with a sigh that was both relieved and joyful.

"You mean to say we're done with all of the Extractions?"

He could not believe how much willpower he had to summon to prevent his voice from sounding overly excited at the prospect.

"I'll have to report my findings to my superiors, of course, and see if they want to pursue anything else," she nodded. "But that was the last one on our list."

"I see."

"A shame, honestly. I really enjoyed working with you. I do hope we'll get the chance to do it again soon," she purred and he forced himself not to instinctively recoil.

Ren was of the mind that he would rather set himself on fire than entertain any notions of hers that he felt the same way. Thus, he ignored the comment entirely.

"Will you be notifying Chief Takarada of my availability or is that something I should do?"

"Oh don't you worry that charming little head of yours," she insisted with a toothy grin. "I'll be sure to take care of it."

"Thank you for that," he said while making a mental note to call his superior anyway.

He began shifting his body towards the door to quietly leave once she had dismissed him. Unfortunately, she seemed to have other plans for him. Her hands reached out and clasped around his wrist and she looked up at him with beseeching eyes.

"Would you like to grab a bite to eat with me to celebrate?" her voice was syrupy sweet and her smile equally sickening. "We'll have to go easy on the drinks, of course, since we're still on company time and all that. Besides, who knows _what_ will come out of my mouth after I've had a few."

Her laughter was a gleeful thumbtack that relentlessly poked holes in the usual quietness of the room. Of course, for all of her supposed levity, Ren still managed to pay special attention to the last thing she said. Something about it felt off. Something about it had all the olfactory hallmarks of a trap.

She was baiting him.

"I am afraid I must decline," he bowed his head once in apology. "I don't seem to have much of an appetite today."

Technically, that was not a lie.

"Oh well," Kimiko shrugged. "Perhaps some other time."

Picking up her things from where she laid them on the desk in the office, she swept past him and out the door. Of course, not before throwing him a saucy wink over her shoulder. Ren let out a heavy sigh when the door closed securely behind her. He had narrowly avoided… whatever that was going to be, but he wondered how long he had until it eventually caught up with him.

He had a sneaking suspicion that he would not be able to escape it when it did.

* * *

"Excuse me, Miss… I'm sorry I've forgotten your name," a man beckoned from a nearby table.

Making a detour on her way back to the kitchen, Kyoko approached the couple sitting at the table with her patented customer-service smile.

"It's Natsu," she reminded them.

"Right, my apologies," he said quickly. "I was hoping you would be able to find a moment to refill—"

He looked down to point at the previously empty glasses in front of him and his companion only to find that they were, once again, filled to the brim with dark liquid that bubbled quietly between the cubes of ice floating on top. The man's lips moved noiselessly a few times until he had sufficiently recovered. With a smile, he looked back at Kyoko and shook his head.

"It seems you already took care of it while we were too busy chatting to notice," he said by way of an apology. "I guess I shouldn't have bothered you."

"It was no bother at all," Kyoko assured him, still smiling. "I'll go check on the status of your meals in the kitchen. Please let me know if there's anything else you need."

As she walked away, she allowed her smile to spread a little further across her lips. It had only been a couple days at most, but the small jar in her apartment was quickly filling with the excessive tips she received. At first, she felt a little guilty, but Kotetsu had encouraged that she practice whenever and wherever she could so long as it was too subtle to be noticed. The results of her hard work were paying off, literally. Customers of the diner praised Kyoko for her prompt service and attention to detail. Praise that came from their mouths as well as their wallets.

If she could keep this up, she would soon need a bigger jar.

* * *

 **IT'S A 2 FOR 1 SALE DOWN HERE AT AIKORI INC. TODAY: you don't even need one of those bulk shopping membership cards for this because I am, literally (and literarily), giving this stuff away.**

 **My original plan was to save this second chapter to release once the one to follow it was complete or nearly complete. But I decided, screw it, let's just bust this baby open like a piñata at a birthday party. So, I hope you thoroughly gorged yourself on this veritable smorgasbord of words. Maybe this will tie you over until the next chapter is out... maybe.**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	27. Contingent

**CHAPTER 26: CONTINGENT**

From the time the Academy allowed a cafe to open on their grounds, it was a rousing success. It was not because the interior was decorated with trendy furnishings in blues, greens and browns. It also was not the soft jazzy covers of popular songs interspersed with folksy indie music that wove its way between the constant sound of chatter. Rather, hundreds of caffeine-deprived staff and students flocked to it daily to obtain the sustenance they needed to get through their day, get through a project or get through final exams.

Ren had been a frequent customer, mostly to just get through life. In recent days, his habit nearly tripled in intensity. Getting out of bed was difficult enough on a regular morning. Getting out of bed when he knew he would have to deal with Kimiko made him wonder if he could call in sick for the rest of his life. Thankfully, the standing appointments with the woman of his nightmares were over and he could resume his normal habit of two cups per day.

On this particular morning, he was ready to grab his first cup for the day before he was reunited with Yukihito for the first time in over two weeks. He spotted a familiar face in his periphery as they entered the cafe and took their place in the line that was already five people deep. A paper cup was being placed in his hand at the pickup counter when he noticed the aforementioned person rifle wildly through their bag before stepping out of the line with a sigh and turning to leave. Before he could stop to think too hard about it, he threw several bills at the person who had just handed him his drink and asked them to create a duplicate.

Ignoring the strange look and upset grumbling that resulted was exceedingly easy. He had endured far worse and far too recently.

Now holding a cup in each hand, he shouldered his way out of the cafe and opened the door with a bump of his hip. His longer legs were a benefit in that particular instance, allowing him to catch up with his quarry relatively quickly. He made sure to slow his pace once he neared them; the last thing he wanted was to spook them by rushing up beside them without any warning. Once he got their attention, he offered one of the cups without any form of greeting or explanation.

Kanae looked between the cup and its holder twice before slowly grasping it in her own fingers. Her other hand adjusted her bag on her shoulder before pulling on the lid of the cup to examine the contents. She took a tentative sip then frowned at him, confused.

"Did you figure out how I liked my coffee while you were inside my head or something?"

He shook his head.

"No, I just figured anyone who had the ability to stare down Kimiko like she was a piece of garbage stuck to their shoe couldn't possibly drink anything but pure, unadulterated coffee."

"Damn straight," Kanae nodded, holding her cup up to him in salute. "Steaming and bitter, just like me."

A dry laugh that came out more like a short huff pushed past his lips. "It would seem that we have something in common."

He held up his own cup as a sign of solidarity and Kanae smiled. She appeared to be going in the same direction as he was and they walked together, somehow entering into an unspoken agreement to accompany each other.

"You too, huh?" she breathed out an abbreviated chuckle. "I wonder if Kyoko knows she has a type."

While Ren's steps did not falter, he did almost inhale a sip of nearly scalding coffee before coughing it back into his cup. Kanae raised an eyebrow of mild concern at him and he shook his head.

"I suppose you would have to ask her that."

She let out a flat hum, "I would if I knew where she was."

He grunted in agreement but said nothing more.

"Yeah, I kinda figured you didn't either or else you wouldn't have…" she made a vague gesture in the direction of her head with the hand still holding her cup. "You know."

Ren opted to remain silent and hoped Kanae would understand. He let his eyes flit nonchalantly between the lamp posts that appeared intermittently along the paved path and the people who walked past them in either direction. For the first time in several days, the sun was out and he was able to fully appreciate it. The empty hand he had placed in his pocket closed around the small blue stone contained within, running his fingers along the uneven edges. When the days were sunny, he always felt a little better. He felt a little closer to _her_ which, in turn, meant he felt a little less badly about himself.

"Right, well, am I correct in assuming your dealings with that dreadful woman are officially over?"

"It would seem so."

She apparently noticed the tone of his voice and her brow furrowed.

"You don't sound too certain of that."

Ren took a sip of his coffee before answering, "Because I'm not."

"Yikes," she winced. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault."

Kanae was quiet while they continued to walk along. They reached a junction where the majority of the others around them turned off, heading in a different direction. Once the number of people around them had dwindled down to two, she muttered as quietly as she could under her breath.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Ren only shrugged and took another sip, "Not much we can do about that now."

This was not an attempt to placate her as what he said was true. The whole thing had blindsided everyone and there was little they could do to guard against it as it was. He was not about to hold anything against her regardless of whatever Kimiko managed to glean during the extraction. The best they could do was prepare themselves well for whatever came next.

They were quickly approaching another diverting path and Ren noticed she was starting to veer towards the left where he was intent on continuing straight. She must have noticed the same thing as they both slowed down in unison.

"Well, thanks for the coffee rescue. You saved my morning," Kanae's mouth formed just a hint of a smile. "I guess I'll see you?"

He looked off into the distance for a second before his eyes met hers.

"Pray that you don't. Who knows what it might mean if you do."

He probably could have worded it in a nicer fashion, but there was little point in sugar-coating anything. They both recognized that a dangerous game was being played, but neither of them knew where all of the pieces were, or even how big the board was. The best they could do was to pick their moves carefully and choose a formation that would, hopefully, afford them a decent defense.

At that time, however, he was actually looking forward to his first day back at work. As the building that housed the Inquisitors' offices came into view, he could have sworn he almost saw the faint glow of a halo around it. After the previous weeks he spent on his 'special assignment' that building almost felt like a sanctuary. It was strange to think of it that way as he had all but declared to himself that it was a prison of his own making. Still, recent events had altered his way of thinking.

Today, it was a friendly face at the end of a harrowing journey. Today, he was home.

Or, at least, some bizarre facsimile of it.

The lobby just outside the Chief Inquisitor's office was empty save for the ever-present secretary at their desk and the lone man sitting on a sofa by the window, checking the time on his watch. Sunlight poured in from behind him, illuminating that particular corner of the room and casting him in full shadow, but the outline of his glasses was still clearly visible. A short exhale escaped through Ren's nose as he shook his head and began to approach the man. Ren often wondered if he deliberately arrived early just so he could appear to be impatiently waiting.

"You're a sight for sore eyes."

He said it so flat, so monotone that Yukihito had to take a moment to look down at himself, pausing to examine his sleeves and brush a hand over the front of his jacket before meeting the Inquisitor's eyes.

"I don't think my hair is long or dark enough for that," he remarked with a nervous laugh. "And my eyes are not nearly golden enough."

The instant discomfort that crossed the man's face once he realized what he had said was nigh unmistakable. He could almost hear whatever silent string of curses he concocted and he seemed to be waiting for Ren to plummet into his usual cavernous doldrums. When the heavy sighs and heavier silence did not occur, he became confused.

"If you had to endure Kimiko Morizumi for as long as I did, anything would seem like a pleasant change of pace," Ren said by way of an explanation.

The other man's brows turned downward and he frowned but the tension evident in his shoulders immediately released.

"I'm going to take that as a compliment since that's probably the closest I'll ever get."

Ren shook his head slowly. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

"And you give yourself too much," Yukihito teased. "Do you make it a point to always show up at the exact time of our appointment? I can't imagine it being a coincidence after all this time."

"Someone has to balance out your habit of arriving far too early."

Ren was in an affable mood that morning. Sure, things were far from ideal and there was considerable room for improvement; Kyoko being there would make up most of that room. But, he also knew things could take a turn for the abysmal in short order, especially if the results of Kimiko's little investigation had anything to say about it. Besides, he had already done a good deed by saving a certain empath from starting her day off caffeine-free. He was going to try to stay positive, even if it killed him.

Well, at least, he hoped it would not come to that.

"It was fifteen minutes," Yukihito defended with a pout.

"I rest my case."

Yukihito got up from the sofa and straightened out his suit before picking up the leather portfolio he had placed beside him. Tucking it under one arm, he huffed at Ren.

"I almost liked you better when you were mopey and angst-ridden."

"Sorry to disappoint."

He was not sorry about it at all and they both knew it.

Yukihito's eyebrow arced high above the rim of his glasses, "She was that bad, huh?"

Ren's shoulders immediately sagged, his meticulously unwavering expression and stature loosened. He let out a sigh accompanied by an exasperated eyeroll.

"Oh you have _no_ idea. You should've heard some of the things she said to me."

He spared no detail in regaling him with tales of Kimiko's general horribleness while they waited to be called in to the Chief Inquisitor's office. The older man gasped in shock at certain parts, his eyes were wide and his mouth hung open in dumfounded awe. By the time Ren had completed his story, Yukihito was fanning himself with the folder he held.

"Ren, that's harassment. Maybe borderline in some instances, but definitely harassment."

"I'm well aware," he nodded.

"Are you going to report her?"

Ren paused, "… I can do that?"

"Of course you can! We're not in the Dark Ages, you know."

The secretary called across the lobby, letting them know they were free to enter Lory's office once they were ready. They continued to talk in lowered voices while making their way to the office door, pausing only to thank the secretary before heading inside. Yukihito tried earnestly to convince his charge that he would be happy to complete the necessary paperwork for him to make an official complaint. However, Ren was adamant about letting sleeping Kimikos lie.

"Who knows what kind of retaliation that could lead to," he reasoned. "She works directly for the Assembly."

"So do I," Yukihito reminded him.

Ren sighed again as they closed the office door behind them.

"Now is not the right time to instigate anything like that. I don't know exactly what she's up to, and I'd rather not put myself in a disadvantageous position if, or when, I actually find out."

"Wise words coming from someone who, just two weeks ago, was a willing prisoner of his own ennui," a third voice interrupted their conversation.

Lory Takarada had two distinct modes whenever he was in his office. One was very casual and laid back, almost lacking any kind of concern for their profession in general. Days like those were perfect to capitalize on and make difficult requests for time off. His other mode was all business; he was focused, strategic, almost cutthroat at times. The two men arrived to find him in the latter of the two modes. He was sitting on the end of his desk, his legs swinging free above the hardwood floor and one hand closed into a fist and braced upon his knee while the other was splayed open on the desk's surface.

Business mode always ended up with him sitting on his desk, it seemed.

He offered them a seat but they, wisely, chose to stand. Lory had a propensity to quickly pace the length of his office while talking when he was like that. It was unnerving to watch him while seated and neither wanted to injure their neck by straining to keep an eye on him while he paced and talked at unnatural speeds.

"Alright, Ren, out with it," he demanded. "I need details of what happened over the past week."

And this, esteemed guests, was Lory Takarada in business mode. There were no jokes, no witty repartee. There were only direct questions and direct orders.

Ren did his best to give an accurate account of every extraction he had conducted alongside the Assembly's representative. He also made sure to keep the details within the realm of Lory's preferred range of 'need to know,' particularly since Yukihito was also in the room. Thus he nimbly skirted around some topics while giving others more in-depth descriptions. The Chief Inquisitor only gave sharp nods at regular intervals, seeming to quickly absorb every word so he could properly dissect them later.

"I don't like the sound of this," Lory began, predictably, to pace the floor. "I don't know exactly what this is about, but I can make a few educated guesses. As can you, I'm sure."

When Yukihito nodded as well, the other two men looked at him in surprise. The Chief Inquisitor even halted his pacing to get a good look him.

"What? I've been exposed to enough of this to have figured out that girl didn't just disappear for no reason," he frowned, almost insulted. "I'm not an idiot."

Chief Inquisitor Takarada grunted in approval. "Ren can't tell either of us any more than he already has so we can stay somewhat protected, but it's probably a good thing that you're at least aware of how serious this is. It'll be helpful in the long run."

Yukihito nodded his thanks while Ren looked away from both of them, lost in thought. There was one more thing he had excluded from his story but, now that Lory's energy had him fired up, he thought he should probably come clean about it. It was a relief to know that he was not the only one concerned about what was happening; what they were being told and, more importantly, what they were _not_. He had already sworn to himself that he would protect Kyoko at any cost and he meant it.

So, he cleared his throat and he had their attention instantly.

"There is one more thing I neglected to mention."

Lory motioned with an impatient hand for him to continue, his pacing resumed once more.

"I wasn't sure how to tell you since it's technically not allowed for Inquisitors to do this during extractions but, considering the circumstances, I did it anyway."

"And that would be?" Yukihito prompted when the room lapsed into silence.

"It's something I realized I should also include you both on, with your consent of course. It's probably something I should have done a while ago, but there was no way of knowing any of this would happen."

He was rambling and he knew it. So, he clamped his lips together and took a deep breath through his nose before starting again.

"I'm asking for help in the event that the worst-case scenario becomes a reality."

* * *

Lory Takarada was nothing, if not an optimist.

He walked into the meeting that afternoon feeling fairly positive about what he hoped to accomplish. It would be a good opportunity to dig up whatever additional details or rumors he could from the other attendees. That had been his mission since his meeting with Ren and Yukihito over a week prior when Ren was permitted to return to his regular work schedule. There was little they could do with the limited information they had from Ren's account. Thus, they were unable to do much in terms of extensive planning until they had more intel.

Unfortunately, he was one of the last to arrive, but he did not let that bother him. He knew the majority of the attendees liked to mill about afterwards and catch up with each other. Most of them referred to it as 'networking,' but it was really little more than an opportunity to catch up on the latest departmental gossip. It was something he was eager to take advantage of on that particular day and he would be patient until he could do so. Selecting an open seat near the door, he quietly slipped into the room and nodded at the few people who acknowledged his entrance before sitting at the large, oval table.

The heads of all of the Academy's departments were supposed to meet once every month. However, since vacations, large projects, and overall bad timing tended to interfere, their meetings were quarterly at best. Lory just happened to get lucky that this one was actually being held.

Looking around the table, he stopped once he spotted Yuki Kuresaki from the Research division, a man of sharp features and even sharper style. He was in the middle of a quiet conversation with Kimiko's uncle, Jouji Morizumi, an Assembly member whose role was to act as a liaison for the group for one year until a new member is rotated into the position. Lory knew that the two men were friends, a fact he was hoping to use when he approached each man separately to learn what they knew. He gave them a smile when they noticed him looking in their direction, lifting his hand ever so slightly from where it lay on the table in a combination of a wave and salute. They gave him only a blank stare and a quick nod in return.

Well, that just meant that he would have to find some way to jovially chat them up and find out what he had done to offend them.

Optimism; it was good for the constitution.

The meeting itself was fairly mundane and boring with its run-of-the-mill agenda. It functioned very much like a Board of Directors meeting and approving the minutes from the previous meeting was one of the first items. It was more a formality than anything else and despite recognizing why it was important, he still loathed that fact that it already made an unnecessarily long meeting even longer.

Next came the departmental reports. Everyone present, with the exception of the Assembly's liaison, was given the spotlight for a minimum of twenty minutes, whether they wanted it or not. Lory tried to make his report somewhat entertaining, but it was a challenge given the material with which he had to work. Investigations and extractions of criminal trial defendants was not exactly the most lighthearted subject. There were only a select few jokes that could be made before it fell into the territory of poor taste.

Once everyone had a chance to put the entire room into a state of torpor, it was time to discuss any old business that had yet to be resolved as of the last meeting. If there was anything, no one spoke up about it. It came as no surprise that Lory was not the only person present who had a burning desire to end the meeting as quickly as possible. Thus, the agenda swiftly progressed to the next item; new business.

That particular segment was often dismissed just as quickly as its predecessor. Most people avoided bringing up anything that could result in an hour-long debate of merits and drawbacks. Therefore, it was only ever used when something of great importance needed to be discussed.

That day was, apparently, one such occasion.

Yuki and Jouji both stood at that point, the latter motioning for his colleague to speak. Lory wished he had eaten more than just a salad before the meeting, but his curiosity more than made up for his impending hunger pangs.

"As some of you may know, the Assembly reopened investigations into the Keypiointe Incident following additional information becoming available," he smiled, pointing his hand, palm upward towards Lory. "Chief Inquisitor Takarada was gracious enough to lend us the skills of one of his best and brightest."

He could only nod once at the recognition, eager to find out exactly where this was going.

"The initial phase of the investigation went well, all things considered, and we are eager to move on to the next."

At this point, Yuki began passing around a stack of paper, asking everyone to take one sheet before giving the stack to the person beside them. Lory eyed the stack as it made it's way closer to him before returning his attention to the man who had stopped speaking and looked to Jouji to take over for him.

"In the interest of time, the details of this effort have been abbreviated but, since the next phase includes the cooperation and involvement of key individuals from this group, you are required to be notified and discuss what potential roadblocks may occur," Jouji explained.

They were smart, playing off of everyone's desire to quickly bring the meeting to a close. He had to give them credit for that. This was the perfect time to slip something of this magnitude in and avoid anyone asking too many questions. Even he would have a hard time belaboring any point for too long before everyone's patience ran out.

"Of course, Chief Takarada, we will be imposing upon you to lend us someone from your talented team again," he added.

Lory nodded again, missing the glint in the man's eye as he was focused on the stack of papers that had finally made its way to him. He pulled a single sheet from the top before handing it to the person on his right. Jouji's voice, that was busy explaining that anyone who wanted more information about the investigation could arrange for either a separate meeting or a one-on-one session, was drowned out as he looked at what was printed on the paper he held.

The introduction was fairly uninteresting, it just outlined the starting date of the investigation, the session of the Assembly during which it was approved and the count of supporting and opposing votes. It also included a brief explanation that the impetus for the investigation was as a result of a discovery made by the Research division after several tests of an experimental piece of equipment.

All of that raised several questions in his mind that he tried to catalog so that he would be able to ask them later. Unfortunately, the next part took his train of thought and pitched it several meters away from the tracks. There was a list of names. Names of people he recognized as a number of them were present in the room at the moment. For everyone listed on that paper, participation in the next phase of the investigation was mandatory and the range of activities in which they could be involved varied anywhere from answering a brief questionnaire to undergoing an Extraction.

It seemed innocuous enough on the surface, until one took into consideration that Lory's own name was also on that list.

Yes, Lory Takarada was nothing, if not an optimist. But, in that moment, the glass was not half full of anything. It had been drained dry and turned upside-down.

* * *

 **YES, I METAPHORICALLY ALLUDED TO KIMIKO BEING A DOG. YOU'RE WELCOME. Have you missed me? I've missed me. Writing this chapter has been like pulling teeth, mostly because it was so hard for me to get my head in the right place to make it happen. To say nothing of the fact that life is stupid busy right now and is only going to get busier.**

 **As such, please expect the next few updates to be sporadic. I will definitely try to keep up with the story when I can, but a schedule is going to be hard for me to stick with until much later in the year.**

 **I will still enjoy hearing from all of you, of course. Your kind words are what keeps me going sometimes when the chapters are being stubborn about coming out of my head. So, I will thank you eternally for that!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


	28. Theorem

**CHAPTER 27: THEOREM**

Kyoko had hit a wall, literally and figuratively. The literal wall, in fact, was hit multiple times by both her head and her hands. She started gently, of course, for fear that she might damage either the wall or herself in the process. Eventually the hitting increased in intensity and frequency, to the point that the noise she made summoned her instructor into the room to see what the fuss was.

The fuss was that Kyoko was struggling.

Again.

Still.

"What are you on about this time?" Kotetsu came through the door with a tired sigh.

Kyoko was sitting on the floor again with the metronome quietly ticking away beside her. It was something that had become a sort of habit for her whenever she had to endure the mind-numbing drudgery of completing the same exercise repeatedly. She had slumped backwards with her head resting against the wall behind her so that she could rhythmically beat said body part against it. Raising her head, she peered up at him looking slightly dazed but mostly irritated.

"I'm not making any progress," she whined.

Kotetsu pinched at the bridge of his nose and sighed again before looking back at his pupil.

"With what exactly? I can't help you if you don't explain your problem."

"I can't do this any longer."

He frowned at her, "So you're giving up because you're having difficulties? That was not a part of our agreement."

"No, that's not what I mean, I—ugh!" Kyoko let her head fall back against the wall one more time. "I can't stop time for any longer than ten minutes and six seconds."

"Ten minutes and six seconds?"

"Yes."

He raised one eyebrow, clearly curious as to the specificity of the duration.

"And you know this because…"

"I've counted. I've tried so many times and so many different methods, I've actually resorted to counting the seconds as they elapse."

Kotetsu hummed to himself as he thought about her dilemma. He stepped further into the room and began to walk the floor in a small circle with his hands clasped behind his back. Kyoko watched him from where she sat, her lips pulled into a pout of frustration. Thus, that was the scene in the room for several silent seconds; pacing and pouting.

"I don't have enough experiential knowledge of your ability to know what the average duration would be," he finally spoke his thoughts aloud. "But you sound as if you feel you should be able to do it for much longer."

"Yes," Kyoko breathed in agreement, relieved that he was sincerely considering her plight.

"And you're basing this assumption on some sort of evidence?"

She clamped her lips shut, but nodded all the same. He scrutinized her for a moment with squinting eyes before turning to complete his circuit around the room.

"How long?"

Kyoko's arms wrapped around her stomach and she took a deep breath.

"I was pretty young at the time so, it's only a guess but at least half an hour."

Kotetsu stopped walking and gave her the same look as before only this time, his hands rested on his hips and he bent slightly forward.

"You'd mentioned before that the three times you had used your ability prior to coming to me, two of them were confirmed by another person," he deliberately paused before completing his question. "Was it the same person both times?"

Again, she only nodded, the fingers of each hand that braced against the floor curled inwards towards the palm. Again, Kotetsu hummed to himself as he thought before he resumed walking. However, his walking carried him straight out of the room without another word said.

Confused, Kyoko stared at the doorway through which he had just left for a few moments. Curious as to whether or not he intended on returning, she stood up from the floor. She was about to follow after him when the sound of the metronome finally registered again in her ears. Turning around, she swiped it up from the floor and locked the arm in place before setting it on one of the desks. Once she had turned back to leave, she was surprised to find him back in the room with her and suppressed a startled yelp.

He stood before her with a fairly large hard-covered book in his hands. It was opened to a specific page and he held it out to her. She stepped forward and took the book from him, turning it around in her hands to see what he wanted her to read. Whatever it was, it looked intimidating in length. The print was small and there was a lot of it. Her mouth was open and ready with a question when he beat her to it.

"Take that with you and read what you can of it. It's a research journal so it will be a bit technical, but I think you'll at least be able to get the gist," he instructed. "When you return again, you can tell me whether or not you think that might apply to you."

"O…kay," Kyoko hesitated.

"I won't ask you any further questions on it but, if you're interested finding out more, I can put you in touch with the person who wrote it," he explained. "They might be able to help you better than I can."

Kyoko's face most likely appeared as skeptical as she felt because she saw him smile reassuringly at her.

"The choice will be entirely yours, but I think this might be the most applicable to your situation," he explained. "If so, you'd do well to learn as much as you can about it and decide how you wish to proceed."

With that, she finally agreed and closed the book around her index finger to mark the page until she could find something to put in its place for the journey back to her apartment. She thanked him for his help and he nodded in response before leaving the room to return to his office. A sigh escaped her and she looked down again at the book she held, hoping that the portion Kotetsu wanted her to read would not be too lengthy. While the volume itself looked quite impressive in size, the place he had marked for her began somewhere in the last half of it. Still, she was determined to read whatever she could for the sake of her own understanding.

This would probably require her to make at least two cups of coffee just to have any chance at comprehension. She made a mental note to pick up some instant coffee on her way home. It was not her favorite choice by any means, but she could forego the soothing ritual of brewing a cup from freshly ground beans in the name of self-education.

As it turned out, she only needed one cup in the end.

The research notes were, quite unexpectedly, engrossing enough that the first cup she prepared that evening was left to turn cold after only consuming half of it. Curled up on the mattress in her tiny apartment, she read like a woman possessed. Sure, there were plenty of terms for which she did not know the specific definition, but she did the best she could using context clues to fill in whatever blanks they left behind. She found herself devouring paragraph after paragraph and page after page.

Having only recently inducted herself as a member of the world of Augmenteds, Kyoko still had very little knowledge regarding Augmenteds, Awakenings and abilities in general. Only the basics were covered during her formal education, after all. However, what was surprising her the most as she continued to read was how little everyone else knew as well. There were still so many unanswered questions and phenomena that only happened in extremely specific conditions that did not seem to require the consistent presence of a particular variable or circumstance.

This particular phenomenon was no exception.

The research had been conducted on something the authors decided to refer to by the term Amplification. It was basically testing a theory that two Augmenteds could show signs of an connection that affected their abilities; a connection that was mostly dependent on their proximity to one another. Thus, both people reciprocally amplified the abilities of the other.

The majority of what was documented was observational data from studying four subjects whose names were replaced by the designation of a single letter as their anonymous identifier. Brief profiles of each subject were included that noted their age, height, eye and hair color and the respective dates of their Awakenings. Subjects A and B were born, and grew up, in different countries and only met later in life when they began working together. At that time, they noticed their abilities seemed stronger and more effective whenever they were in each other's presence. However, using their abilities on each other was markedly less effective.

Conversely, Subjects C and D were friends and next door neighbors who had known each other since Subject C was a toddler and D was a newborn. They attended the same schools together and had a similar circle of friends. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary after they had both Awakened around their early teens. They ended up not noticing a difference until one of them left to study at an Academy in another city.

She idly picked at the sheets on the mattress, mostly to give her hand something to do while her brain went into overdrive.

This certainly explained why Kotetsu had asked the question he did. Was this what happened between her and Ren (technically, he was still Kuon at the time, but the point remained)? It _seemed_ plausible, but that did little to explain why he was able to embark on a career as a highly successful, and powerful, Inquisitor while she was still in Keypointe. It seemed as if neither her absence, nor her presence, had any effect on him.

That turned out to be a rather depressing train of thought. By the time she realized she had not meant to go that far in her mental meanderings, it was too late.

Then again, he also never mentioned if he was again able to enter the minds of an entire town's worth of people at once like he had on that horrific day. Knowing him, he probably never considered trying; not that she would blame him. Perhaps his ability was just that strong. Did that mean hers was as well? There was no way of knowing due to the lack of information available about her particular skill set. Too many ideas starting with 'possibly' and 'maybe' floated through her head, making an already painful thought process worse. She set them aside for later ('later' being, most inevitably, while she was trying to fall asleep) and returned her attention to the research paper.

Reaching for her mug to take another sip, she realized she made a terrible mistake. A grimace pinched her face and she stuck out her tongue in disgust at the taste of cold instant coffee. She considered getting back up to make a new cup when a glance at the time told her she should probably avoid any further doses of caffeine if she wanted to actually sleep that night.

Thus, she picked up the book and started reading again. The meat of the article was packed to bursting with technical jargon, charts, diagrams and more empirical data than anyone could reasonably anticipate. However, she soon realized something crucial was missing.

Answers.

The entire thing was little more than conjecture. For all of the time spent and information collected, it could basically be summed up as 'results inconclusive.' No true cause could be identified for the phenomenon and the fact that researchers could only study two confirmed cases meant that the sampling size was far too small.

What, then, was the point of her even reading that?

She asked Kotetsu as much when she saw him next, gently placing the book on the desk in his office before taking a seat. He shook his head with a faint, fond smile and assured her that the end result of the research was not what was important.

"But the study basically concluded with the equivalent of a giant, indecisive shrug," Kyoko reasoned. "What else could I possibly learn from that?"

"If there's something you should know just as well as I do about Augmenteds and abilities, it's that the impossible happens every day," he reminded her. "Just because they couldn't turn it into a groundbreaking scientific discovery, does not invalidate what occurs between those two pairs of people."

She paused, sitting back in her chair with her argument dying on her lips. He made an extremely interesting and valid point. Truly, he had a habit of doing that often enough that she should not have been surprised.

"You're right," she conceded, sighing. "Of course you're right."

Kyoko was grateful that he refrained from smugly agreeing with her. Instead, he took the opportunity to distract her from the impending self-deprecation that her mind threatened to unleash.

"A negative result can often mean that further study is needed or that the hypothesis needs to be reformulated," he pointed out.

Her brain chewed on the statement for a while, letting it turn over and over until it formed into a proper question. She pulled the finger she had unconsciously hooked onto her lower row of teeth out of her mouth.

"Have any other studies been done on this?"

"No," he shook his head. "But that doesn't necessarily mean that it didn't warrant an additional study."

Kyoko looked at him with her eyes squinted and mouth pushed to one side.

"What are you trying to say?"

He smiled.

"I'm trying to encourage you to think critically. Based on what you know and what you've learned about your Academy and others, why do you think no one dug any deeper into this?"

Her eyes narrowed tighter and tighter until they almost closed. Then, they slowly opened as the conclusion Kotetsu had all but circled with a red marker and drew giant arrows around finally dawned on her. Soon, her eyes were as wide and round as her mouth, which seemed to have opened on its own.

Kotetsu only smiled again.

"Well, would you like to meet the man who led the study? I happen to know him personally."

"You really think I could possibly gain some valuable insight from him?"

"There is little left that I can help you with at this point. You've already gained a decent understanding of your own ability and how to control it, so I believe it's worth trying at the very least," he tilted his head to one side. "Though, you would have to find the means to make travel arrangements."

Kyoko raised one eyebrow.

"How far are we talking here?"

"Astetra's capital city."

She balked instantly, not because of the distance but because of the location. There was really no reason for her reaction other than the fact that she knew Ren was from there. It was not as if anyone there would know of her or even recognize her face. Additionally, Kotetsu was arranging for her to meet with someone he knew, which meant she was certain he would never knowingly send her into potential danger. Logic slowly crept its way back in to push out her formerly irrational thoughts.

It seemed the jar full of tip money in her apartment would be put to good use, provided she could request the time off. Then again, she could always quit. She was not particularly tied to that job either way.

Her head bobbed in a hesitant nod.

"Alright, who will I be meeting?"

"The lead researcher, of course. His name was at the beginning of the paper," he pointed to the book on his desk.

Kyoko picked the book back up and flipped through the pages until she again found the research article in question. She realized then that she completely bypassed the title page as it did not appear to have any important information that was relevant to her. The most she had done was scan the title of the work before she moved on.

That was, apparently, a mistake on her part. Particularly because she had already agreed to meet with this as-yet unnamed person. She wondered if she could renege. The first name below the title stared back at her in a taunting manner. Technically, there was nothing taunting about stark, black lettering printed on a sheet of white paper, but she felt particularly slighted.

"Kuu Hizuri," she groaned, reading the name out loud.

"Yes, do you know him?"

"I know _of_ him," she admitted with another sigh.

That was the best way to put it, honestly. She really did not know the man herself. She barely recalled that she had seen him on more than one occasion, but they were never formally introduced. The majority of her knowledge came from what she had been told by his son. Knowing his son was, partially at least, the reason she was even in this predicament in the first place. The twisting sensation in her stomach told her things were most likely about to become even more muddled and complicated.

"He's on the Assembly of Astetra's Academy but, I assure you, he's not your typical Academy sycophant," Kotetsu was quick to qualify his statement "I wouldn't send you to him if he was."

"He'd be awfully hypocritical if that was the case," Kyoko mumbled to herself.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"I said I never pictured actually meeting him face-to-face."

It was a flimsy cover-up but he bought it, much to her relief.

"Yes, well, hopefully he can provide you with some additional knowledge where mine is lacking. Once you let me know when you're available to travel, I'll contact him and make the appropriate arrangements."

"Great," she tried, and failed, to force a little enthusiasm into her reply.

Thankfully, her mentor was too caught up in his own contemplations to notice it. He was muttering to himself under his breath, apparently trying to decide how many days she should spend in Astetra while also considering the time needed to travel there. She took her time getting up from her chair, knowing he would have further instructions for her once he finished consulting with himself. So, Kyoko waited patiently, nursing the silent hope that the time frame would be too long for her to sustain without the financial bolstering of a steady income.

"I think you'll probably need at least ten days," he said decisively.

Sadly, ten days was all too reasonable of a request. Her frown was internal, but it was a deep one. Outwardly, she nodded.

"I'll let you know."

She knew he would not let her stall on it either, so there was little hope in trying to avoid asking altogether. Therefore, she would have to find a way to mentally and emotionally reconcile how exactly she was going to rip the very large, and potentially very painful, bandage off in one clean pull.

Because how exactly does one just casually approach someone and explain that this meeting was due to a random coincidence of events and, even though you have never really met in the past, you are already somewhat connected to them through their son who is currently living in another country under an assumed name? Additionally that son was only responsible for one half of an event that garnered worldwide attention after it happened, you being the other half. But he had convinced himself that he was the only one in order to save you to the extent that even he did not remember the truth. Furthermore, once you both regained your memories, he convinced you to split up once more in order to protect yourselves from further scrutiny.

Yes, she thought, that would go over _exceedingly_ well.

* * *

 **HOW AIKORI GOT HER GROOVE BACK: Well, first, she tidied up her room. Then, she finally folded and put away a few month's worth of laundry. Things just kind of snowballed from there.** **Updates will still be irregular because life, as it is wont to do, will be keeping me quite busy for the next couple of months. But, I have not forgotten about this story and I plan to keep working on it!**

 **I'd had this part planned ages ago (probably a couple of years) but it had several question marks next to it as to how I was supposed to get here so I figured I'd just let it happen organically and see where it led me. Thus, we have this. Hope to see you all here again soon!**

 **AUTHOR OUT!**


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